Box of syringes and dead sheep carcass found by children

The participants scoured 20 kilometres of roads in the Sperrins, gathering almost a tonne of litter as part of TIDY Northern Ireland’s Big Spring Clean campaign.

More than eighty adults and children donned reflective vests to spring clean the glen of Glenullin near Garvagh as part of the local GAA club’s annual litter pick.

They covered roads around the glen and afterwards tens blue rubbish bags, could be seen dotted along roadsides for miles outside of Glenullin, showing drivers that people care about their local area.

One group even found a box containing syringes that had been carelessly dumped along a path where children found it.

Organiser Donna Rainey said that in a 500m stretch of road they found eight tied up farm feed bags containing the remains of dead animals as well as an exposed sheep carcass, empty milk cartons, piles aggregate and a mass of drinks containers, some of which dated back to 2002.

This was Glenullin GAC’s second annual litter pick and it is hoped that continuing this event every year, will educate members of all ages that litter is simply unacceptable and to act as responsible guardians of their townlands.

Volunteers returned to Glenullin GAA hall, where everyone enjoyed tea and sandwiches served up by the camogie team and all of the children who took part received an Easter treats.

Club secretary and organiser Gerard O’Kane thanked everyone for their help and encouraged people to try and lift any litter they see whilst out walking, to help maintain the roads in a pristine condition.

Tidy Northern Ireland’s Patricia Magee, who took part, said: “The enthusiasm of the community in Glenullin is an example to everyone and hopefully this will continue to educate young and old the importance of looking after. The effort they put into keeping the area tidy allows everyone to benefit from its beauty.”