Scottish ski resorts get a spring clean

It’s a fact, that one cigarette butt pollutes upwards of 1 cubic metre of water, a coke can takes over 200 years to decompose and even orange peel will not disappear in less than a year. All these items, and many more are found on ski slopes across the world.

The Ski Club of Great Britain is encouraging mountain users in Scotland to do their bit for the environment by picking up litter dropped during the ski season in ‘The Big Spring Clean’ being organised by the Ski Club at two different ski areas, Cairngorm Mountain and Nevis Range on Sunday 1st June 2008.

The 'Big Spring Clean', the next step in the Ski Club’s Respect the Mountain campaign (respectthemountain.com), is an opportunity for people to have a fun day out in the mountains whilst contributing to the well-being of the land by picking up as much litter as possible.

The event, as well as helping the sustainability of the mountains and the wildlife, aims to raise awareness about responsible tourism and send a message to skiers, hillwalkers and all mountain users about the seriousness of dropping litter. Similar projects run in the French Alps have seen shocking results with twenty tons of rubbish being picked up by volunteers in forty-one resorts in 2007.

Caroline Stuart Taylor, Chief Executive of the Ski Club explained the reason behind event: “Since the launch of our Respect the Mountain campaign in 2004 the Ski Club has been proactive in educating and raising awareness about what people can do to try and safeguard mountain environments. The 'Big Spring Clean' will help to raise awareness in our own country, promoting sustainability in the Scottish resorts and encourage mountain users to do their bit to help preserve their mountains.”

The 'Big Spring Clean' is taking place at Nevis Range and Cairngorm Mountain on Sunday 1st June between 11am-4pm. Meeting points are at the bottom of the gondola at Nevis Range and the Ranger Base, Coire Cas at Cairngorm. Volunteers will be given bin bags, gloves and litter pickers at the meeting points. There will also be a prize for the person picking up the most litter plus free tea and cake for all volunteers.

For more information on the 'Big Spring Clean' visit skiclub.co.uk or for more information on the Respect the Mountain Campaign visit respectthemountain.com.