City cleaning service calls for help with removing grit

The Berlin municipal waste management company (BSR) plans to remove the grit in the coming weeks.

There is still a lot of grit on many pavements in Berlin at the moment – and it will remain that way for several weeks to come.

The Berlin Street Cleaning Authority (BSR) expects to have it cleared by mid-April and is asking residents and property owners for their support to ensure that the work progresses as quickly as possible.

Only dispose of small quantities in residual waste

Only dispose of small amounts in residual waste.
"We hope that many citizens will lend a hand," said Axel Koller, head of BSR street cleaning, and offered several tips:

• If you sweep up grit, you can dispose of small amounts of up to ten litres in a bag in the residual waste bin. It is important to ensure that the bin can still be moved by BSR employees and therefore must not be too heavy.
• Slightly larger quantities of grit, up to 30 litres, can also be handed in at all 14 BSR recycling centres free of charge.
• Grit that has been swept into piles on the pavement can be left there at the edge of the path and will then be removed by the BSR. It is important not to sweep the grit into the roadside – or into the drains.
• There is no need to notify the BSR that the grit has been swept up – and you shouldn't, recommended Koller. "It doesn't help us if we are constantly being called and asked: When are you coming to my place? With 2,400 employees, we can't be everywhere at once."

The BSR does not reuse the grit it collects. "It is cleaned and used as a building material in road construction," said Koller. Grit is sharp-edged – if it has been walked on several times, it becomes blunt. "We always use fresh grit."