The Ditch Divers and other volunteers are working to clean up Nova Scotia, ‘one of the dirtiest provinces’ when it comes to litter

POSTED IN MORNING FILE The Ditch Divers and other volunteers are working to clean up Nova Scotia, ‘one of the dirtiest provinces’ when it comes to litter Also: Zazu’s big adventure; The Art of Birding; Gerry Post: Nova Scotia loses a leader who fought for accessibility for all; ‘A mountain of unnecessary and unfair obstacles’: New report highlights barriers to unionization faced by N.S. workers; Nova Scotians among the 11 seniors from climate caravan arrested on Parliament Hill BY SUZANNE RENT SEPTEMBER 23, 2026 Two volunteers with The Ditch Divers after a cleanup. Credit: The Ditch Divers Ramona (Mona) Clarke has long hated litter and takes the effort to clean it up when she’s out for walks. During one of those walks, Clarke met a founding member of The Ditch Divers, a volunteer group that picks up litter. The Ditch Divers started during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Twin brothers Tim and Tony Hart, who lived in Fall River Village, decided to use the time during lockdowns and temporary layoffs from their jobs to clean up litter in their neighbourhood. The Hart brothers have moved on, but the work of The Ditch Divers continues, with Clarke now part of the administration of the group. On Monday, I interviewed Clarke, along with Andrew Pulsifer, who helps groups like The Ditch Divers, as well as Scotian Shores, World Litter Run, Cleanup Highway of Heroes N.S., with litter prevention and management strategies. Danelle Ulrick is another crucial member of The Ditch Divers’ team. “I’ve been picking up litter for years and years,” Clarke said. “We’re not just cleaning up and doing maintenance and such, we’re working on preventative measures as well.” Pulsifer got into cleaning up litter when he retired and moved back to Nova Scotia from the United States in 2020. “I couldn’t get over the amount of trash I was seeing all over the place,” Pulsifer said. “It was driving me nuts. I thought I had to do something about this.” Volunteers with The Ditch Divers gather trash. Credit: The Ditch Divers Pulsifer came across The Ditch Divers via an online search. He said while he has done cleanups, he didn’t want to get into ditches, but rather focus on prevention. “Seeing what I could do to prevent litter from happening in the first place,” Pulsifer said. Pulsifer said he and other anti-litter groups have two goals: to prevent litter before it happens, and to manage litter after it happens. Pulsifer said The Ditch Divers are speaking with other…