COME wind, rain or shine, volunteers across Gwent regularly dedicate their mornings, afternoons or evenings to picking up litter.

Dropped rubbish has become a scourge on modern society and sadly, it’s rare if you don’t see a plastic bag trapped in a tree branch, or debris floating in the many beautiful streams and rivers that populate south Wales.

It’s why we at the Argus embarked on a campaign last year which aimed to raise awareness and help tackle the fly-tipping and litter that plagues our area.

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Earlier this year it was shortlisted for the campaign of the year in the 2019 Wales Media Awards.

But the campaign was never about us – and it still isn’t.

So, we’re taking a look back at some of the best litter-tackling efforts from the community.

In January, a committed group in Torfaen announced it had removed 582 bags of litter and fly-tipped waste from the Pontypool area in just four months. You can read about them here.

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“More and more people are going out into their communities to clean,” Ron Ford, who helps run the group, said.

“Even if they only do it outside their houses, the more people who are seen doing it, the better.”

The litter-fighting bug seems to have stuck in Torfaen because in November, the Torfaen Litter Champions collected more than 90 bags of rubbish from just two lay-bys on the A4042. You can read about them here.

Jess Flag, a member of the public first alerted the problem to the group.

She said: "It was a sea of litter. You couldn’t see the ground. It was pretty shocking.”

In February, a group from Natural Resources Wales collected 52 bags of plastic drinks bottles from a litter hotspot in Newport - including one whole bag full of just plastic bottle lids. You can read about that incident here.

“This is the worst site I’ve ever seen," said Rhys Morgan, NRW Marine Technical Specialist. "The litter may have been accumulating there for 20 years or more.”

And in April, a team of eco-warriors in Newport were inspired to form a new group. You can read about them here.

The Duffryn Dusters was established by Nick Carter, who said he was “astounded” from the amount of support he received from the local community and volunteers.

In November, two young volunteers took up the call to arms with their mum to help clear rubbish in from a car park on Bulwark Road, Chepstow.

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Lucy and Molly Reynolds, alongside mum Tracey, gave up their weekend to collect five bags of litter. You can read about them here.

In April, a group of young rugby fans who travelled to Abergavenny to watch their team won the admiration of local litter-pickers after helping to help clean up the stands in Bailey Park.

The four young men - whose identities are a mystery - were in town to watch Newport's Hartridge RFC play a match on Saturday afternoon, but before kick-off they joined Andy Pook, a member of litter group Keep Abergavenny Tidy, to clean up the stands in Bailey Park. You can read about this story here.

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Mr Pook said: “I thought they were quite remarkable. They asked me for nothing but I give them a bag full of respect.”

South Wales Argus:

We want to continue shining a spotlight on those in the community committed to fighting litter.

So join our Facebook group by searching South Wales Argus: War on Litter.

Or send in your stories, photos and videos to newsdesk@southwalesargus.co.uk