This past week saw the highlight of International Coastal Cleanup, an initiative to remove litter and debris from the world’s beaches and waterways. Since the rivers in and around the City of Cape Town all flow out to sea, one way to reduce the impact of litter and debris in the ocean and on beaches is to clean the rivers and canals. This step was undertaken by an enthusiastic group of girls and boys from Rustenberg Girls’ High School and the SACS, who took time out of their Friday afternoon to clean the lower banks of the Liesbeek River.
Within an hour of the group working along the river, eight bags of litter had already been collected. The group also helped with the maintenance of clearing the banks of invasive weeds growing along the river, and also planting some indigenous plants along the bank.
The Friends of the Liesbeek is very thankful for these young and passionate volunteers who gave up their time. As always we are also very grateful to Tuffy Brands whose continued support ensures that the Friends of the Liesbeek, along with many volunteers, may continue cleaning up the Liesbeek River.
Group of students cleaning the cleared areas along the Liesbeek River
The girls and boys from Rustenberg Girls’ High and SACS who helped with the cleanup
The Rustenberg Girls working well together
Getting stuck into some of the debris that is deposited into the river
