April sees the return of An Taisce’s National Spring Clean. People can organise a clean up in their local area, be it urban or rural, by contacting nsc@antaisce.org or logging on to www.nationalspringclean.org. Participants will be supplied with rubbish bags (which will be collected), litter picks and hi-vis vests. Alternatively, there is a “2 minute street clean”, where people are invited to spend about two minutes picking up litter any time they are out, information available on www.2minutesstreetclean.org. Both initiatives really do make a difference to your locality – isn’t it uplifting to see clean stretches of rural roadside verge, bedecked with wild flowers rather than discarded wrappers, coffee cups, bottles etc. and nice clean streets in urban areas. Rubbish begets rubbish while people may, just may, hesitate to throw litter in clean areas. Why not take the opportunity to encourage friends, family and neighbours to get involved – also, litter picking with other people can be a rewarding community activity. Furthermore, the spring clean might inspire some of you to help with either the Tidy Towns or Wicklow Pure Mile year-round litter picking schemes. The results are well worth the effort.