Party-goers dump 85 tonnes of rubbish on London's streets after New Year celebrations

Huge celebration: Some 85 tonnes of waste was left in Westminster following festivities
PA Wire/PA Images
Fiona Simpson1 January 2017

A spectacular 85 tonnes of waste and around 15,000 Champagne bottles were cleared from the banks of the Thames after one million revellers gathered to welcome the New Year.

A mass clean-up operation on the streets of Westminster saw an army of 120 people collect around 85 tonnes of rubbish left strewn across the borough.

According to Westminster Council, approximately 15,000 Champagne bottles were also gathered.

Officials called-in 50 vehicles including refuse trucks and mechanical sweepers to battle through the rain during the huge operation.

A second mass tidy took place after the New Year’s Day parade.

New Year fireworks in London

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Last year’s collection saw enough waste to generate 45,050 kWh of electricity for the capital – enough to power a television for 376,000 hours or for a Tube to travel the entire length of the Jubilee Line.

Councillor Melvyn Caplan said: “While thousands of people have been enjoying all that Westminster has to offer during this Christmas and New Year’s, our waste and recycling services, along with partners at Veolia, have done an excellent job ensuring our streets are cleared and cleaned during a busy festive period.

“Our winter service plan has also been in effect and continues to ensure that our roads are fully functional no matter what the weather may bring.”

Mass tidy: Young Muslims gathered to clean up streets in south-west London (Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association )
Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association

Meanwhile, a group of young Muslims gathered in south-west London to collect litter left behind by party-goers.

The volunteers from Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association took to the streets of Wimbledon, Morden and Kingston to gather bottles and rubbish as part of a national clean-up campaign.

Mercy for Mankind will see 5,000 cleaning sessions take place across the country this year.

British Imam and spokesman for AMYA Farhad Ahmad said: "Littering costs the UK an estimated one billion pounds a year.

“While the Government and local authorities are doing a great deal to address this issue, we feel strongly that it is our religious and civic duty to also act.

Kind volunteers: Young Muslims kept Wimbledon's streets tidy (Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association )
Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association

“From a religious perspective, both cleanliness and looking after our local communities is an essential part of the Islamic faith. With this in mind, our members kicked off 2017 with a nationwide street cleaning day.”

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