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Countdown to Big Dee Day 2019

Published: 10/09/2019

Hundreds of volunteers will be taking to the banks of the River Dee and surrounding areas over the next week for The Big Dee Day 2019 annual clean-up which begins on Friday, 13 September marking the start of a week of clean-up events along the River Dee and its catchment area.

The Big Dee Day is one of the biggest community and conservation based events in North East Wales and North West England and has been a well-established, annual event since 2007, for which Flintshire, Cheshire and Natural Resources Wales are key stakeholders. Covering the coastline and tributaries from Talacre to Chester and south Denbighshire the Big Dee Day is not just a large scale litter pick it’s so much more.

The event will once again see Flintshire County Council and the neighbouring councils of Cheshire West and Chester, Denbighshire and Natural Resources Wales working with volunteers from community groups, conservation groups and businesses from across the region to clear the river of marine litter, spruce up the areas along its banks and plant fruit trees as well as sprucing up the special places along the River Dee’s banks, coast and catchment area. Their efforts are coordinated by the Council's Countryside Rangers who take the opportunity to work with many community groups, schools and numerous businesses including Airbus, Kingspan, ENI, Toyota, McDonald’s, Tata Steel, KK fine foods and many others.

A few early birds have already been out, Natural Resources Wales collected 15 bags of litter from the Holway, Holywell. Some of the other clean-up activities taking place are:

·                  Kingspan will be clearing around Greenfield Dock (13/09/2019)

·                  Airbus will be clearing up to the Welsh border (13/09/2019)

·                  Saltney Town Council will be clearing around the Saltney area (13/09/2019)

·                  North Wales Wildlife Trust will be clearing around Talacre (13/09/2019)

·                  RNLI are out clearing Flint foreshore (14/09/2019)

·                  Friends of Wepre Park will be litter picking Wepre Park – public event (14/09/2019)

·                  Friends of Bagillt Foreshore will be out litter picking Bagillt Foreshore (14/09/2019)

·                  Holywell Scouts will be clearing around Greenfield area (14/09/2019)

·                  UPM Smart Solutions will be out clearing around Talacre (16/09/2019)

·                  80 students from Coleg Cambria will be out litter picking at Saltney (17/09/2019)

·                  Toyota and Sustrans will be planting trees at Flint (17/09/2019)

·                  McDonalds will be out litter picking around Mostyn (18/09/2019)

·                  Sainsbury’s will be working with Sustrans at Swinchard Brook (18/09/2019)

·                  Our Back Yard Project will be clearing Golftyn to the Rock (18/09/2019)

·                  Quay Waterman’s Association will be clearing the stream by the Old Dock (19/09/2019)

·                  Park Adfer will be working with a local school learning about  problem of plastics and doing a litter pick (19/09/2019)

·                  Tata will be working to improve their groups

·                  ENI are working with the local community to tidy up around Talacre (20/09/2019)

·                  KK Finefoods will be litter picking around the industrial site (20/09/2019)

·                  Point of Air Holiday Park will be tidying up around the Point of Air (21/09/2019)

It is estimated more than 12 million tons of plastic, from bottles and bags to microbeads end up in our oceans every year (greenpeace.org.uk) and the River Dee, its estuary, river banks and marshes have the potential to capture a significant amount of plastic. 

Cllr. Carolyn Thomas Cabinet Member for Streetscene and Countryside Services said;

“The River Dee and its estuary is a marine environment of regional, national and international importance and it is vital that we all understand the threats it faces from waste materials, particularly plastic, and what we can do to combat those threats.

“Now in its thirteenth year The Big Dee Day is dedicated to highlighting the magnificent, but fragile marine environment of the River Dee and the need for it be respected, valued and protected.

“We can now look forward to this year’s events and make the River Dee a nicer place for all. Huge thanks in advance to the hundreds of volunteers involved.  It’s an amazing event which shows what can be achieved when everyone joins together and helps improve our natural environment.”

Please contact Flintshire County Council’s Countryside Rangers on 01352 703900 or via social media (@Countryside&Coast) for further information or follow Big Dee Day on Twitter #BigDeeDay.