E-A-S-I
Earley Adopt-a-Street Initiative
Autumn 2022 Newsletter

Welcome to EASI’s Autumn 2022 Newsletter. Well done to all our litter pickers for keeping Earley’s streets clean throughout the hottest summer on record, with local temperatures reaching highs of around 40 degrees centigrade and even night time temperatures breaking records. Now that we are into the autumn, you’ll need to wrap up warm and keep dry, so rather than sun hats and light clothing, it'll be rain hats and warm coats. Whatever the weather keep yourself safe and keep up the good work!

A Big Thank You to Earley Charity and Earley Town Council
We are extremely grateful to Earley Charity and to Earley Town Council both having granted EASI funds to support our litter-picking activities. Earley Charity awarded us around £1,600 for the purchase of 80 adult and 20 junior litter pickers and Earley Town Council awarded EASI £300 for the purchase of bag hoops (see right). Without such generous help we would not be able to supply the equipment needed to keep our streets litter free! If you would like a bag hoop, as shown on the right, please get in touch with us (first come first served!)

Membership
The EASI stall at the Earley Green Fair in August attracted many of our existing volunteers and some new ones. Many confirmed that they are still picking and let us know about local litter issues. We recruited around 8 new volunteers, increasing our membership to 312.

EASI Committee member Brenda has continued her great work in contacting members to see if they are still able to litter-pick their adopted streets, and to ensure that our records are up-to-date. Of the 63 litter-pickers not heard from since 2020, we have now heard from all but 20. Eleven have ceased to litter pick, but as we have found pickers for several of the streets, the number of streets without a picker has reduced to around 18 streets.
If you are able to take on any of the streets listed below, or to share streets or work as a group, please get in touch.

Wanted - Recycling Committee Member
The EASI Committee is looking for an EASI member who is interested in recycling to join us and take on the role of updating our information on local recycling schemes that is provided through EASI’s Newsletter and on the EEG Website. This includes schemes such as Wokingham Borough Council’s latest initiatives, Ali’s Recycling and local supermarket and shop recycling schemes. Please get in touch with us if you are interested.

Beavers Litter Pick
EASI Committee Member Brenda attended a meeting of the 84th Reading Scout Group Beavers in September to tell the Beavers about EASI and to take them out litter picking. The Beavers were very receptive and knew that litter isn’t just unsightly but damages the environment and is a danger to the wildlife. About 18 Beavers, along with the Beaver Leaders, Brenda and her husband Les, then enthusiastically picked litter along the path between Radstock School and the back of the Leisure Centre. They seemed a bit disappointed that there wasn’t more litter (!) but in fact they filled the equivalent of two full bags and also found two shopping baskets, one of which was later returned to the supermarket. One of the Beavers announced that this was ‘very fun’ and everyone fully participated, so hopefully we will have recruited some avid litter pickers for the future.

Thames Valley Park Autumn Litter Pick
On October 12^th members of EASI and the Earley Environmental Group’s Wednesday Volunteers joined Earley Town Council’s Annual Autumn Litter Pick at Thames Valley Park to litter pick the Thames Path between the Waterside Centre and the Horseshoe Bridge at the River Kennet. Many bags of litter (some from the Thames) were collected, helping to keep part of one of the area’s most attractive walking and cycling routes free of litter. We are grateful to Wokingham Waterside Centre for allowing us to use their car park and toilets.

The EASI Recycling Directory
The EASI Recycling database can be found on the Earley Environment Group Website under ‘Environment’ and ‘Recycling in Earley – an updated guide’. The Main Directory lists items that can be recycled, examples of the item, and where they can be recycled; including the use of the TerraCycle site. The Recycling Points list includes a map of where to find the recycling points.

Contacting EASI
The EASI Committee Members are Chris Bassett, Tracy Collins, Bob Collis, Brian Hackett, Grahame Hawker, Brenda Hill, Stephen Kerry and Richard Tredgett. Contact us on EASI’s Email address, or visit the EASI Facebook Page ‘EASI Litter Pickers – Earley’. We are listed in the Reading Voluntary Action's (RVA) Directory. Information about waste recycling and reporting substantial amounts of dumped rubbish or fly-tipping can be found on Wokingham Borough Council websites, as follows:

• general information about rubbish and recycling at https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/rubbish-and-recycling/
• rubbish and fly-tipping clearance at https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/roadworks-and-outdoor-maintenance/fly-tipping/
• ‘Fix-My-Street’ which can be used to report excessive litter, fly-tipping, etc.

You can download a version of this Newsletter

EASI Newsletter No. 11, Editor: Bob Collis 19/10/22