Artwork is a load of old rubbish

By John Hill on September 25, 2007 12:00 AM

VOLUNTEER river cleaners breathed a sigh of relief after police thwarted a performance artist's attempt to dump a van-load of plastic into the Thames.
Isle of Dogs residents and Wharf workers are due to meet at Saunders Ness Road for a four-day river clean-up from today (September 27), led by environmental charity Thames21.
But they feared their workload was about to swell when artist Mark McGowan revealed his plan to hurl bags of plastic waste into the river - to highlight the problem of dumping.

Thames21 informed the police and Environment Agency, who blocked Mr McGowan's stunt on Sunday (September 23) outside the Angel pub on Bermondsey Wall East.
A spokesperson for Thames21 said: "We're sympathetic to his point, and we understand that he's against litter. But we don't think that highlighting the problem of litter by adding to it is particularly sensible."
Mr McGowan's previous demonstrations have included eating chunks of a Corgi to protest against Prince Philip's backing of fox-hunting, and rolling a peanut across London using only his nose.
He said: "I don't want to go around dumping things. But, believe me, I would have done it if they hadn't stopped me. It wouldn't have made much difference.
"The amount of rubbish that's visible when the tide comes out is just astronomical. It was easy for the police to stop me, because I told them I was coming, but they told me they hadn't arrested anyone for river dumping in the last few years. People have got to think about how they're disposing of their waste."
Thames21 clean-ups have removed about 40 tonnes of waste from the Isle of Dogs stretch of the river in the past year; the equivalent of 800,000 two-litre bottles. At least 30,000 plastic carrier bags have also been cleared, and even an entire kitchen unit, including a fridge and an oven.
Rubbish collects on the bend of the river, causing an eyesore and a threat to wildlife.
Employees of Wharf businesses such as Reuters, Credit Suisse and Waitrose will be taking part this weekend, as will Poplar and Canning Town MP Jim Fitzpatrick.
Volunteers should meet at Newcastle Drawdock from 7.30-10am today (Thursday, September 27), 8.15-10.45am tomorrow (Friday, September 28), 9-11.30am Saturday or 9.30am-noon Sunday (September 29/30). Go to www.thames21.org.uk for details.
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