“This could be my full-time job,” says litter picking volunteer, Becca Flavey
THE community litter picking group, Keep Riverside Tidy, have called on Cardiff Council to do more to stop used drug needles being left on the streets.
Members of the group, formed four years ago to tackle littering in the area, are discovering used needles underneath the bridge in South Riverside regularly, with one person saying it was “a daily occurrence”.
The needles are often found among other drug-related litter and human waste, potentially causing harm to the public.
The issue has been reported to the council by the group via Twitter six times this year and the group is calling on the council to act as discarded needles and syringes carry a risk of viruses such as Hepatitis B and C and HIV.
Cardiff Council’s cleansing team regularly attend following requests, but no plan has yet been implemented to prevent or proactively remove this litter.
The group says a large amount of litter is regularly left at the top of Coldstream Terrace and a bin was promised three years ago, but has not been provided.
In response to a call to urgently remove the dangerous waste and advise the group on removal strategies, the council insisted that they are currently working on initiatives to deal with littered needles in the city.
And it’s not just used needles that the group is asking for help with. Fly tipping and general littering is also a problem in the area and other parts of the city.
Burhan Uddin, of Gabalfa, said: “Unfortunately the issue with needles is likely to get worse as policing the streets is now nearly an impossible task.
“The massive increase in fly tipping is purely down to the council. I’m not saying that people should fly tip, but the council have made it very hard for people to dispose of our bulk rubbish. People hire waste removal guys who then go and dump them in the lane.”
Keep Riverside Tidy would like to work with the council to co-create long term plans that are more sustainable and creative.
Group secretary Becca Falvey, of South Riverside, said: “This could be a full-time job. You could litter pick the streets every day in Riverside and there would still be more rubbish to get rid of the next day.
“It has a fundamental impact on your wellbeing when you see an area that looks well looked after, but unfortunately, Riverside doesn’t look this way.
“We know that the council are really keen on promoting Cardiff as a place to come and visit, but the people who live here all of the time are fed up of how dirty the city is. We know that we can do better and we deserve better.”
South Riverside previously had a community skip scheme where the council provided a skip for use by residents.
Ms Falvey continued: “We know from speaking to people locally that the that most of the fly tipping happens where these skips used to go. A lot of people don’t have transport to go to the tip and it’s a complicated process.
“We’d be really supportive of bringing the skips back. You could even turn it into a neighbourhood event.”
The group is comprised of five core members and several volunteers who spend two hours picking litter in South Riverside every weekend.
The group was unable to meet during Covid lockdowns but provided volunteers with equipment supplied by Keep Wales Tidy so that they could litter pick on their own accord.
Project officer for Keep Wales Tidy, Gareth Davies, said: “Keep Riverside Tidy are a local community group that we have supported with litter picks, publicising events, they also had a Local Places for Nature starter package last year.
“They are an independent group with their own governance and are awesome people.”
