During Keep New Zealand Beautiful Clean Up Week in September we headed along to the Liffey River for a variety of activities.
We joined the many groups and organisations around New Zealand who during this one week in September hold events to remind us that New Zealand must be kept beautiful by us all.
The event, as usual, was organised with three school levels (Pre-school, Primary School, and High School) and each group had its own set of activities all aimed at maintaining an awareness of keeping our environment as pristine as possible.
The pre-school set about picking up as much rubbish as could be found. Gloves and bags were provided by the Keep New Zealand Beautiful organisers and the rubbish collected was carefully sorted. Many items were in fact recyclable or able to be upcycled and did not have to add to any landfill.
A small group from the primary school were shown by Waterwatch how to collect water from the stream and look for tiny creatures that live in the water and how they can be an indicator of water quality. The High School arrived later and did more elaborate testing on the river water finding, as is too usual these days, a high level of nitrates. Click to see the full results.
Whilst all the activities were pursued with enthusiasm and interest, it is fair to say that the most interest and enthusiasm were reserved for the sausages that Lincoln New World traditionally provide and cook for us. These were very much enjoyed after everyone had endeavoured, in their own small way, to keep a part of New Zealand beautiful.
