It could arguably be said that one of the many marks of a thriving community are the people within it – those willing to put their hand up to say: ‘Let me try to do something, big or small, for the place I call home’.

For a few community members of Fairland, Northcliff, and Berario, on July 5 this gesture looked like getting up early to participate in a clean-up, hosted by non-profit company, Community Cleaners.
They cleared a large section of land found along 14th Avenue of various forms of rubbish, discarded scraps, and rubble.

Read more: Community takes action to clean up illegal dumping in Sophiatown

The NPC has been in action since 2021. “Every week since then, without fail, we have loaded a bakkie load of rubbish from these communities,” said founder André Swanepoel. He, along with a small group of volunteers, put their energies behind making this particular Fairland site rubbish free.

One of the day’s volunteers, Karen Scheepers, said she volunteers because she loves being of service to the community, as well as to people, and wants to live in a clean environment. “It makes me sad that we live in a beautiful country that we are destroying.”

Swanepoel said, spaces like this vacant land, being filled with litter, should be something community members take action against, because it attracts more rubbish. “It’s the broken window principal, once one person starts the dump, it starts a ripple effect. Then it starts looking like a mess. Soon, you lose control, but the solution is so simple – just clean up the area.”

This won’t be the only work done on this land, as they will also clear it of invasive plants, starting on July 7.

Look out for more on this clean-up and the organisation, in one the upcoming Northcliff Melville Times editions.

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