News Beat
Canoeists fish fly-tipped fridge freezer from River Wear
But volunteer canoeists launched an extra-oar-dinary litter picking mission after being alerted to the home appliance dumped illegally in the water in Durham city.
Teams from the Durham City Riverscape Community had to retrieve the fridge and remove it from the river by floating it alongside the canoe.
Residents had first alerted the issue to the City of Durham Parish Council, which funds and supports the river group, raising concerns about its impact to the river environment and wildlife.
Chair of the parish council’s environment committee, Councillor Carole Lattin, said: “This incident highlights both the scale of the problem caused by fly-tipping and the extraordinary commitment of our local volunteers.
“The riverscape team stepped up and showed just how much they care about our river and our environment. We are incredibly grateful for everything they do.”
River coordinator of the community group, Mr Bob Walling, said: “Our volunteers were shocked to see something as large as a fridge dumped in the river, but we were determined to remove it before it caused any further harm.
“We’re proud of what we achieved and grateful for the ongoing support of the Parish Council, which allows us to keep protecting and improving this special stretch of the River Wear for everyone to enjoy.”
The Durham City Riverscape Community was established just before the Covid-19 pandemic and carries out monthly litter picks in and around the River Wear.
Since starting, it has collected many tonnes of waste from the Wear.
Last year, the group was shortlisted in the County Durham Together Awards Environmental category for their work.
