Listen Live
HomeNewsEco-conscious teen collects 447 pieces of plastic on Denman Island

Eco-conscious teen collects 447 pieces of plastic on Denman Island

An eco-conscious teen is shocked at the amount of plastic she came across along a busy stretch of road on Denman Island.

During her run on Christmas morning, Lucy Dabbs says she found herself picking up plastic and trash on the side of Lacon Road.

A whole lot of plastic and trash, in fact.

“It (is) a very short, four-kilometre stretch of road and just from one side I collected 447 pieces of plastic litter, and when I first started picking it up, I never expected to pick up so much,” she explained. “So it was really shocking to me, especially when I counted it all up.”

- Advertisement -

Picking up other people’s litter wasn’t something she set off to do that morning.

“I was just running along the road and I saw one piece and then once I stopped I kept seeing more, so I just kept picking it up,” Dabbs said.

Most of it included food wrappers and plastic bags over the two hours she spent there, and she also collected a couple of disposable surgical masks.

Dabbs says it demonstrates to her that even a small piece of plastic really adds up and becomes very significant in the environment.

- Advertisement -

She doesn’t believe that most of the trash was intentionally thrown onto the side of the road.

Going forward, Dabbs said she has been bringing a bag with her on her morning run and a second time around picked up even more plastic along that same stretch of road.

“It does feel like it really makes a difference,” Dabbs said. “I think that I’ll  be picking up the plastic a lot more often, now.”

She believes that since the pandemic started, people have been more hesitant to pick up things that aren’t theirs, especially trash because it’s perceived as dirty. 

- Advertisement -
- Advertisment -
- Advertisment -
- Advertisement -