Earth Day, Pollution

Swans nesting amongst plastic bags and floating rubbish. photograph: Vivien Blackburn

It's sad how uncaring people can be of our environment.

The canal and river wind their way through the city with a footpath enabling you to walk the entire length, a green lung for the city. Unfortunately parts are spoilt by sights like this. There is a wealth of wildlife including kingfishers in quiet spots - but swans here are nesting amongst floating plastic bags and rubbish. :>(

This is at the shallow edge of the water just beneath where I sat to draw the scene below.



The recent move by supermarkets to persuade people to stop using plastic carrier bags can only be a good thing :>)

Why don't they go back to the paper carriers for those who come without a bag of their own? from sustainable sources of course, they are much more environmentally friendly - and look much nicer too.

previous work done here

and more

and more

and go and read Sue's post today about the 4 P's - absolutely brilliant!

Comments

Africantapestry and Myfrenchkitchen said…
Thanks for the link to the 4 p's...my BIG one - Procrastination...ZUT!!
Ronell
PS: I hope one day you'll catch those swans in beautiful clean waters and then give us a painting of it - I can't get them out of my mind, since I saw them earlier on WM.
R
2:14 pm
Katiejane said…
Hi Vivien, I so agree with you. It is a pity that the creatures of nature are forced to deal with the messes of humans. We so need to be more respectful of our environment.
Your sketch is beautiful. Funny how an artist can erase out the ugliness that's actually still there.
7:48 pm
vivien said…
Procrastination - oh me too Ronell! the whole lot echoed for me!

yes, poor swans - though they could easily swim off to cleaner water so can't be too unhappy there.

Thanks Katie Jane - yes it's so wrong

When I sat down to sketch I couldn't see that grungy bit!
9:19 pm
dinahmow said…
Procrastination! Not only that, I combine it with a rough level of impatience.Beyond help, I suppose...
2:39 am
vivien said…
:>) and I always find the least urgent task is the one that I really want to work on! the most urgent I can't get motivated.
6:20 pm
annie said…
Poor lovely swans...We are lucky enough to have these lovely landscapes in our lives, these waterways and rolling lands under sunrise and sunsets, and some people look at them and only see a trash bin. Even when we lived 17 miles in on dirt roads with no neighbor closer than 4 miles and no pickup passing more often then every 4 hours, visitors managed to find a bar ditch that appealed to their trashing instinct. I keep hoping that with the trend toward ecology awareness, some of these offenders will start learning to care for their world.
annie
5:00 am
vivien said…
I do hope so Annie
1:58 pm
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