REAG members continue to clean canal

REAG found Coke cans, plastic bottles, sofa, wood and trolleys thrown into Rochdale Canal

Members of the Rochdale Environmental Action Group (REAG) cleaned the Rochdale Canal again on Saturday 5 July, from the Oldham Road Bridge towards Littleborough.

They found Coke cans, plastic bottles, sofa, wood and trolleys thrown into the canal which they say contaminate the water and slow the flow and harm those birds that drink water.

Ghulam Rasul Shahzad OBE, Secretary, Rochdale Environmental Action Group has written to the River and Canal Trust and asked them to take immediate action to get the canal cleaned as soon as possible. He said: “We appreciate that it is the River & Canal Trust, which has the responsibility for the canal, but there should be some co-ordinated work between the Environmental Management of Rochdale Council and the River and Canal Trust. The state in which the canal is at the moment cannot be left unattended and without taking action to clean it.

“Some parts of the canal are in bad condition and need immediate action, we should be asking the appropriate authorities to take action against those found responsible for throwing such things in the canal.

“We are also asking the people of the Borough of Rochdale to show respect to the canal, its water, birds that drink its water and the beautiful environment.”