Council welcomes ‘30 Parks in 30 Days’ campaign 

Fermanagh and Omagh District Council has welcomed a new litter campaign by McDonald’s, aimed at tackling litter in parks, on paths and along roadsides in towns across Northern Ireland.

The ‘30 Parks in 30 Days’ campaign will see McDonald’s employees undertake 30 litter clean-ups in parks and nature areas across Northern Ireland throughout the 30 days of June – including Drumawill Park in Enniskillen and Lovers Retreat in Omagh.

Led by the seven local franchisees across McDonald’s estate of 33 restaurants in NI, the clean-up events will be supported by local councils, elected representatives, schools and volunteer groups.

Councillor Anne Marie Fitzgerald joined a recent litter clean-up at Lovers Retreat, led by the McDonald’s Omagh restaurant.

Chair of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, Councillor Errol Thompson, said:

“Fermanagh and Omagh District Council is committed to a cleaner and more vibrant district and takes a proactive approach to tackling the issue of litter in the district.

Unfortunately, litter remains an issue. It is bad for the environment and costs ratepayers money with the Council spending a significant sum each year to keep our towns and villages clean and tidy by lifting other people’s litter.

The Council is pleased to support the McDonald’s ‘30 Parks in 30 Days’ campaign to tackle litter and I thank the McDonald’s staff in Enniskillen and Omagh and fellow Councillors for their efforts. I hope that such positive action encourages others to take pride in and care for their local area and the Council would be pleased to support this during the year through its Litter Champion volunteering scheme.”

David Walker, Franchisee of the McDonald’s Omagh restaurant commented:

“At McDonald’s, we take our environmental responsibilities extremely seriously. We very much share our customers’ and stakeholders’ disappointment and frustration at seeing litter discarded carelessly in parks, on paths and by the sides of roads.

“Whilst our employees regularly undertake voluntary litter clean-ups in these areas, this collaborative ’30 Parks in 30 Days’ campaign between our restaurants and local communities reinforces our strong commitment to tackling litter in Northern Ireland.”

Mr Walker said the campaign adds further to “a wide range of litter initiatives” rolled out by McDonald’s on a daily basis. Across the UK and Ireland, McDonald’s staff collect 27 tonnes of litter every year, on litter patrols that take place around every restaurant three times a day. Employees cover a total of 5,000 miles each week picking up all waste, be it our own packaging or that of other restaurants and retailers.

The launch of the ’30 Parks in 30 Days’ initiative comes following McDonald’s recent ‘Talking Rubbish’ campaign in Northern Ireland with popular social media and entertainment social publisher LADbible Ireland.

Building on the success of McDonald’s #GetInTheBin campaign, the digital campaign features videos of items of ‘talking rubbish’ discarded at iconic locations across Northern Ireland. Whilst intended to be light-hearted and engaging, the campaign carries a serious message about the detrimental impact litter is having on the world around us.

Mr Walker continued: “Alongside our practical and operational initiatives, we are committed to investing in proactive campaigns that help bring about behavioural change in relation to important societal and environmental issues such as littering.

“We have been hugely encouraged by the levels of engagement with our ‘Talking Rubbish’ campaign, which is targeted at the 18-34-year-old LADbible audience.  With our first video in the series attracting over 25,000 interactions within a matter of hours on Facebook and Instagram, it is clear that a strong desire to make a positive change around littering is shared right across our society.”