Litter picker starts One Million Bags challenge

A man who has collected hundreds of bags of litter from a city's streets is now asking others to join him in a new challenge.

Mark Rowlands, from Easter Compton, collected more than 700 bags of rubbish in 2024 and is now hoping to "mobilise" as many people as possible in Bristol to help him fill one million bags this year.

"A lot of people look at litter and think it's not my job," he said. "But it's about having a purpose, being part of a group that's striving to achieve something great, and improve your fitness and mental health at the same time."

He hopes the One Million Bags challenge will "bring the communities of Bristol together" and help residents feel safer where they live.

Mr Rowlands, who works in corporate sales, said he is "passionate" about volunteering and giving back to the community.

"When I'm out and about around Bristol I hate seeing litter so I decided to start picking it up and I thought I'd set myself a goal and do it across as many areas of Bristol as I could," he said.

"Whenever I go walking with my dog I take my litter picker in my bag, I keep bags in the back of my car, sometimes when I'm jogging I do it as well."

Mr Rowlands said he is setting up a group on the exercise app Strava.

"Everytime someone goes out and they log their walk or run on Strava and they collect a bag of litter, they can take a photo and upload it," he said.

"There's going to be an ongoing count throughout the year in terms of how many bags of litter the group collects."

By launching the new challenge, he hopes to make an impact on communities where litter can have a "psychological effect".

"I think in many societies, particularly marginalised communities, you do see an increase in litter," he said.

"People tell me once they see their litter cleared, they feel a lot safer."

Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.