See It, Pick It, Bin It Litter Action
917. Nick Urquhart
Nick Urquhart, from Kettering, has cleared over 10,000kg of litter from Kettering since creating the litter action group ‘SeeItPickItBinIt’ in 2011.
After seeing large amounts of litter building up in the local area, Nick decided to use his annual leave to tackle problems of waste in the community. He encourages colleagues, volunteers and councillors to support him and raise money for local charities and specialist litter-picking equipment in the process. Nick and his volunteers devote over 1,000 hours a year to picking one tonne of rubbish, the majority of which is then recycled. This year, Nick has been inspired by BBC’s ‘Blue Planet 2’ to concentrate on clearing plastic from local rivers. The award for Nick was presented by Philip Hollobone, MP for Kettering, at his workplace alongside colleagues and the Mayor of Kettering, James Burton.
In a personal letter to Nick, Prime Minister Theresa May said:
“The clean-ups you organise are significantly reducing litter in Kettering and transforming your local community. Clearing over 10,000 kilograms of waste is a fantastic achievement, and I wish you the very best of luck in completing your challenge for this year.”
Philip Hollobone, MP for Kettering, said:
“Nick Urquhart is a local hero for all he is doing to help tidy up Kettering. I am delighted that his activities have reached the attention of No. 10 Downing Street and I am thrilled for Nick that the Prime Minister has deemed him worthy of this national award. Everyone in Kettering will want to send Nick our thanks and will take great pride in his achievement.”
Nick said:
“Taking positive action on litter, especially in our seas and our family’s food chain, has thankfully gathered momentum recently, in communities all across the UK and beyond. The current Zeitgeist has seen thousands of unsung individuals and groups taking ownership of their streets, rivers and green spaces. It’s this sense of feeling connected to the places in which we live, that is so vital in building strong, clean and safe communities. It is my belief that the social visibility of litter picking, enables that sense of ownership to develop, in the citizens of the future. I gratefully receive this award, on behalf of all the litter pickers who feel passionately enough to cross that imaginary line between walking past litter and picking it up, in an act which leaves a place, better than you found it.”
See more about ‘SeeItPickItBinIt’
Picture credit: Kettering Evening Telegraph