Litter Picking

Saturday, 30th August 2025

Edges of Oxleas and Shepherdleas Woods

It was time to revisit the Woodland Edges alongside the Welling and Rochester Ways - and what a bright sunny day we awoke to, quite a change from yesterday's downpour! Sixteen volunteers joined the session and helped collect litter from the grass verges alongside the roads to prevent it finding its way into the woods and impacting the wildlife and the ecology.

We split into four separate groups, two tackling the different ends of the Rochester Way, whilst the others worked their way down Welling Way and back, as well as collecting litter within Falconwood Field.

Just some of the things found on Welling Way.

Altogether we collected 30 rubbish sacks of waste. The greatest part of the general litter was cut-up pieces of sweet wrappers, drinks cups and fast food trays, as well as numerous cigarette ends - all in piles along the verges, clearly where drivers have opened their doors and tipped them out! Cigarette ends may look harmless but they are a major ecological problem as their plastic filters don't biodegrade and they release toxins into the environment. Additionally, they eventually break down into microplastics that enter the soil and the water systems and then harm wildlife through ingestion.

Other finds included seven large gas cannisters, some panels of laminate flooring, a couple of plastic buckets, a window pelmet, a car hub, a road sign complete with chains, a couple of pairs of high-heel shoes and an animal skull!

Evidence of the cycle of life.

Slightly more concerning was the number of broken glass bottles that had been smashed along the path through Falconwood Field between Welling Way and Falconwood Station. From the size of the pieces, and the area of spread, we think they have been deliberately smashed. While this is annoying and very thoughtless, more importantly it is dangerous for people, wildlife and dogs!

Another 30 hours contributed to picking up other people's litter. Once again, the speedy, efficient collection by RBG meant we do not have a photo showing the amount of the final pick, though the ones we do have will provide an idea of the collection.

RBG waste collection was very efficient - no time for our group photo!

Thanks volunteers!