Working in partnership with Tameside Canal Boat Trust and Tameside Council, we are asking local people to come along and get involved on Monday 16 March between 10am and 3pm. Meeting at Portland Basin Museum, the volunteers will help transform the canal and adjoining land.
How you will be helping
Activities will involve litter picking from the towpath and cutting back and pulling up weeds and overgrown foliage. Our work boat will be clearing plastic and rubbish that has ended up in the water.
Research shows that more than half a million items of plastic reach the oceans from the UK's canals and rivers every year and the Canal & River Trust spends over £1 million a year helping to keep its canals free of plastics and other discarded waste.
Our Mission
Gary Wilkinson, our volunteer development coordinator, said: “The Ashton canal is an amazing place for both people and wildlife, so it is a real shame that some people don't take their litter home with them or put it in a bin.
"Working together with Tameside Council and Tameside Canal Boat Trust, we're on a mission to eradicate litter and plastics from the canal for the benefit of local people, and for the wider planet.
“Being by the water makes you happier, and it's satisfying to make a difference. If you want to do something amazing for the local community, get some fresh air, exercise, and make new friends, we would be love to see you on 16 March: together we can make a difference.”