Grotspots hit in massive clean-up

10:25pm Monday 17th March 2008

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TONNES of waste were collected in the first hours of a major blitz on Rossendale's grotspots.

The big spring clean across the borough will continue until at least the end of March.

Work has already been under way at Prinny Hill and Pitts Head areas of Haslingden, where staff and residents collected 2.8 tonnes of waste, including abandoned fridges, cookers and tyres.

Laburnum Street, Parkinson Street and Lincoln Street, which had suffered large amounts of fly-tipped waste, have already been targeted during the campaign.

In the Pitts Head area, council officers spend most of Friday afternoon and Saturday, clearing unsightly rubbish from the back of Kirk Hill allotments and the nearby park.

Workers say the worst area they had to clean was South Shore Street.

On Saturday, staff tackled the multi-use games area off the Wallbank estate by removing a large amount of litter from the paths and grassed banks leading to it.

The council says a Whitworth 'litter picker' will now be monitoring the area on a regular basis in order to keep on top of the problem.

The team also cleared up the wooded area below the Pennine Road Estate in Bacup and rubbish was collected from banking behind homes on Sandfield Road, which will be monitored by Bacup's town centre caretaker.

Coun Judith Driver said: "The council is determined to get Rossendale looking spick and span this year as part of the Rossendale Pride Initiative.

"We are putting more resources than ever into trying to make the borough cleaner. Unfortunately littering and fly-tipping are a huge problem.

"We are making the best use of the resources that are available to us, but we do rely on, and need the help and support of local residents, residents groups and organisations such as Civic Pride to help us tackle this perennial problem which never seems to go away."