Over 2,500 volunteers have given up almost 5,000 hours of their time to rid their communities of litter.
Durham County Council once again worked in partnership with Darlington Borough Council this year to organise events as part of LitterFreeDurham’s annual Big Spring Clean campaign.
The campaign, now in its seventh year, took place from 29 February to 17 April and has once again proved to be a huge success.
It saw schools, community groups, parish councils, Greenpeace, Scouts and Guides, youth groups and the Environment Agency helping out in the fight against litter.
In total, 188 litter picks took place, which saw 2,583 volunteers spending a total of 4,712 hours collecting 2,480 bags of rubbish.
In addition the Environment Agency used specialist equipment to remove debris and a tree, weighing 2.5 tonnes, from the River Gaunless in Bishop Auckland, with thirty bags of litter picked up from along the riverbank at the same time.
Another 2.5 tonnes of rubbish was also collected from Darlington’s River Skerne.
Ian Hoult, neighbourhood protection manager at the county council, said: “It was incredible to see so many local people get involved with this year’s Big Spring Clean campaign.
“Everyone worked really hard litter picking and showed pride in their area.
“We’d like to thank all volunteers who gave up their time to make a difference in tidying up our towns and villages.”
Cllr Gerald Lee, chair of LitterFreeDurham, said: “Since LitterFreeDurham started the Big Spring Clean more and more volunteers are joining in to clean up their own communities.
“This year numbers have increased by a staggering 36% – a brilliant turn out by wonderful people who take an active role in doing something positive.
“My thanks to everyone involved including Durham’s Pride Team, Darlington’s Street Scene Officers, the Environment Agency and Arriva.”
A number of campaigns are delivered across County Durham and Darlington every year to support local communities in improving their local environment.
To find out more about such activities and how to take part, visit www.durham.gov.uk/civicpride, email civicpride@durham.gov.uk or phone 03000 261 000.
To report litter online, visit www.durham.gov.uk/litter or phone 03000 261 000.