Organised by environmental charity Keep Scotland Beautiful, Spring Clean Scotland is the country’s largest mass litter picking event and takes place every year, encouraging people to organise or join a litter pick to clean up their local area.
In Dumfries and Galloway 5,321 people took part in 590 clean ups. Dumfries and Galloway also received a prize for being the local authority with the highest number of clean ups per population.
Across Scotland, this year saw:
- 34,702 people involved including 17,883 young people
- 3,340 clean up events across the country
- 46,877 bags of litter collected
- 309 tonnes of litter picked
- 69,404 volunteer hours spent litter picking
Barry Fisher, Chief Executive at Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “Every year we kick off #SpringCleanScotland with the aim of getting as many people as possible involved in keeping Scotland beautiful.
“It’s fantastic to see so many people in Dumfries and Galloway got involved, showing their commitment to tackling the litter which is polluting their community and our environment.
“Almost 35,000 people across the country registered their activity this year, but we know there are thousands more who will be doing their bit every day without a fuss.
“So while we’re celebrating the people who took part in #SpringCleanScotland 2026, I’d also like to extend our gratitude to every person who has made an effort to clean up their part of Scotland – we all have a part to play and your activity is truly appreciated by us all.”
Councillor Andy Ferguson, Chair of Economy and Infrastructure Committee at Dumfries and Galloway Council, said: “We’re proud that Dumfries and Galloway has once again been recognised with the Spring Clean Scotland Quaich. This reflects the ongoing efforts of our communities, whose commitment to tackling litter makes a real difference across the region. We remain committed to supporting volunteers and working with partners to keep our communities clean and welcoming. “We also want to recognise the incredible dedication of community groups who work tirelessly, week in and week out – not just during the Spring Clean campaign, but all year round – to keep our local areas clean, vibrant and thriving.”
The 2026 #SpringCleanScotland report is available to view here: spring-clean-report-2026-final-150626.pdf
#SpringCleanScotland is part of Keep Scotland Beautiful’s Clean Up Scotland Programme which complements and supports the objectives of the Scottish Government’s National Litter and Flytipping Strategy and Marine Litter Strategy.
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