Three abseilers dangled from Te Mata Peak to start a hillside clean-up of the 10 tonnes of rubbish dumped from the top.
Hayden Roberts, of the Flax Rock Adventure Centre, and Clem McGarock and Andrew Murphy, from the Kiwi Adventure Co, abseiled between 50 and 100m down the peak for the
large-scale litter pick up.
With one hand on the rope and another holding a bag, they hauled 12 bags of mostly household rubbish to the top.
Items too heavy to lift, such as a concrete fence post, broken TV and a dishwasher, were pushed further down the cliff for a larger clean-up at the bottom of the peak next month.
Co-ordinator Johnny Ryan was surprised by the size of yesterday's haul.
"I told [the abseilers] it wouldn't be a big job, but there's plenty of rubbish," he said.
"It took about 2 hours and they'll be back. There's at least three hours [more work] just on the front face."
Mr Ryan said most of the rubbish was at the bottom, with more than 300 tyres alongside whiteware and household items.
The clean-up did not come cheaply. Although volunteers would make up the manpower, a helicopter will be hired to lower tonnes of rubbish to a loading area on Waimarama Rd. There was also the cost of disposal and each tyre alone cost $2.50 to recycle.
Rubbish thrown from the peak has been an ongoing issue for the Te Mata Park Trust, but chairman Bruno Chambers said this was the worst he had seen it. "It's appalling the level of rubbish that's thrown off the top of the peak. It beggars belief that people will actually go as far as towing wheelie bins and fridges up there and throwing them off."
Mr Ryan was urging people to also clean up their own streets. "If you see [some rubbish] down Heretaunga St or wherever, pick it up and put it in the bin, because we really need to stop all this."
The clean-up is scheduled for November 13, weather permitting. Some volunteers will be needed to help on the day, but Mr Ryan said it would be better to support the project financially, as too many people in the area could be dangerous.
Those interested in supporting the clean-up could email info@tematapark.co.nz or phone Johnny Ryan 8785560 or Bruno Chambers 874 4858.
