Are you old enough to remember the Wombles? If not they were/are pointy-nosed, furry creatures that live in burrows, where they help the environment by collecting and recycling rubbish in useful and ingenious ways.Well, we had the Wallasea species of womble at work on Saturday as the WalVols' numbers were bolstered by energetic environment enthusiasts on our Shoreline Scavenge - and amongst our finds was..yes, you guessed it - a small plastic womble! Anyone who can identify which one will be awarded a small, but precious project prize.
Two cattle truck-loads of flotsam were retrieved from the saltmarsh edge, along the seawalls on the south and east coasts of Wallasea island. Luckily for us the weather was kind and rain held off until we closed the back of the truck for the final time. Included in the amazing array of strange objects retrieved were a computer monitor (perhaps a victim of pc rage), and a good range of children's toys, road signs, workmen's equipment, garden pots and of course lots of bits of broken boat!
The air was thick with jokes about one-legged , thirsty sportsmen as several single training shoes were rescued from amidst a sea of plastic bottles,drums and cans. Despite the hard work, not just lifting the heavy stuff, but having to get it across the upper marsh and up the seawall to the landward side, the team remained in very good spirits, speculating about rubbish coming from a space wormhole and other such imaginative star trek/Dr Who type theories!!After a well-earned picnic, I was amazed that anyone had the energy to carry on, but we worked on until we had a veritable mountain ( by Essex standards anyway) from which to draw resources in two weeks time. Refreshments for the scavengers in The Anchor at the end of the day was a perfect end to a really enjoyable and satisfying day.
More photos of the day are on our Flickr site at http://www.flickr.com/photos/rspb_wallasea_island_wild_coast_project/
In two week's time, we will be joined by the Art Factory, who have the unenviable task of designing and building 'people perches' from what we have gathered. These bench forms will be a welcome addition to the public footpath, where walkers will be able to pause, perch and enjoy the view. The Wild and Rubbish day will begin at 10am on saturday September 3,beside the public car park, and anyone is welcome to bring their creativity and join in.
To encourage you here's a lovely piece written by one of our junior visitors, who came along on a school trip recently:
Wallasea Island,As windy as can be,Look closely for the pirates,Lying down beside the sea.A bird can be seen high up in the sky,See how far up they can fly.Easy to see are the ladybirds,An amazing sight, I’m lost for words.
By Hollie Smart(Yellow Class, Rochford Primary)
I've gone wild on Wallasea!