EDMONTON – When you think of retirement, the idea of cleaning up litter probably isn’t the first thing that comes to your mind. But that’s exactly how one retired emergency room physician is spending his days.
Dr. Robert Brown devotes up to 20 hours a week to picking up garbage from the side of one of Edmonton’s busiest freeways: Whitemud Drive. The 65-year-old primarily focuses on the stretch between Rainbow Valley bridge and Quesnell bridge.
He says he’s seen “pretty much everything” there.
“I’ve found cell phones, wallets, drivers licences; I even found a pornographic film — a video,” he said with a laugh.
“But it’s mostly construction debris…and then there’s the stuff that people throw out.”
That includes bottles, cans, cigarette packs, candy wrappers, fast food bags – even diapers. Occassionally, he’ll come across something a little more valuable, like a $5 or $10 bill. That only happens maybe once a year, though.
“It’s a low paying job.”
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Brown says people will sometimes even recognize him at the grocery store, and ask him if he’s ‘the guy on the freeway picking up trash.’
But he doesn’t do this for money or praise.
“Maybe I’m just obsessive compulsive about trash,” he said. “Or maybe my mom made me clean up my room too much, I don’t know.”
Ultimately, he just wants a cleaner city; and his fixation with that started about 30 years, while out for a jog.
“I would see trash, and I’ve never liked trash lying around — especially where I like to run. So I would pick it up by the handful, and then I started carrying small bags, then larger bags. And then eventually, I just dropped the running…and I would go out specifically to pick up trash.”
Now, Brown sees it as exercise. Plus he’s always enjoyed the outdoors.
“And I’m making some kind of a contribution without having to go to meetings,” he said.
“I will keep doing it as long as I can.”
Aside from no littering, the City would also like to see more volunteers like Brown. You can call 311 if you’re interested in helping out or register online.
READ MORE: City recruiting to help clean up Edmonton
According to the City main corridors like the Yellowhead, Whitemud and 170 St. are some of Edmonton’s worst areas for roadside trash.
The fine for littering is $250 dollars.
With files from Laurel Gregory, Global News
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