Litter clear-up after Leeds pro-cannabis park gathering
- Published
A group of students have tidied Hyde Park after the annual event.
A group of students have staged a mass clear-up after piles of rubbish were left behind by crowds smoking cannabis.
Hundreds of people congregated on Woodhouse Moor, in Leeds, on Wednesday for "420 Day" - an unofficial gathering synonymous with marijuana use.
The event angered some residents, with one calling it a "mass festival" where people were "publicly urinating".
Kayleigh Curtis, who took part in the clean-up, said she wanted to show that students care about the environment.
Pictures taken the day after the event show litter, including beer bottles, food wrappers, an old slush machine and a couch, strewn across the park.
Dozens of students volunteered to join the clean-up
The annual event - which takes place on 20 April - is seen as a means of celebrating marijuana use and campaigning for it to become legalised in parts of the world where it is prohibited.
It is widely believed its origin lies in the escapades of a group of friends from San Rafael high school in northern California in 1971.
After the event in Leeds one resident said the park had been "rammed full of people openly smoking drugs".
Kayleigh Curtis was among those who took part in the clean-up operation
Ms Curtis, who was joined by more than 20 Leeds Beckett students, said they wanted to show residents that "not all students were the same".
"It's a real shame because everyone wants to enjoy the day but it's sad to see the rubbish left behind," she said.
"We want to show the local community that we do care about the environment and we do care about the opinion people have of us as students."
Fellow student Rebecca Adkin, 23, said it was frustrating and upsetting to see the state the park had been left in.
"We appreciate that the event does happen but we do think it could happen in a cleaner, more environmentally friendly manner," she said.
Police said the event passed "without issue" and no arrests were made
West Yorkshire Police said neighbourhood policing teams were on patrol in the park throughout the day to "respond proportionately and appropriately to any crime or anti-social behaviour and ensure the safety of the public".
A spokesperson said: "The event passed without issue and there were no arrests."
Cannabis is a Class B drug and it is illegal to possess, give away or sell. Anyone convicted of possessing cannabis faces a prison sentence of up to five years while anyone convicted of selling it faces up to 14 years in jail.
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