'Can't stand rubbish': Why this retiree cleans up other people's mess

The retired Dubbo resident, 79, spends two hours, three to four times per week, picking up rubbish around town.

He does it because he wants Dubbo to look beautiful.

But it's not just rubbish he finds - he has also picked up personal items that he has reunited with their owners, something that warms his heart.

"I've had a mate down the road who had his ute broken into one night with his laptop in it, and I found the laptop over by the railway line," Mr Knott told the Daily Liberal.

"He offered me a carton of beer and I said 'No thanks, I don't drink.'

"I like to see their faces when they get back what I give them."

For his troubles, Mr Knott has found four $50 notes over the years, which he considers a bonus.

But mostly, it's landfill thrown out of car windows that Mr Knott collects.

"[I find] takeaway food wrappers, cans, bottles, household stuff like TVs, clothes - I could write a book about the type of stuff I pick up," he said.

"[I've found] people's underwear, some tools - I've got a good supply of shifters and screw drivers over the years.

"Stuff that's been stolen and they've dumped it, and I work out who I think might own it and I take it back to them ... I keep nothing of value - I've picked up wallets and returned them to people."

Mr Knott mostly cleans along High Street and down Margaret Crescent, as well as Palmer Street, and sometimes Tamworth Street. He also visits supermarket car parks and the local pool.

"If I see rubbish lying around anywhere in South Dubbo, I'll pull up in my car and report it, if I can't put it in my car," he said.

"Mostly I bring it home and put it in mine or my neighbour's bin [depending on who has space]. They don't mind me doing it."

Mr Knott enjoys the challenge of picking up rubbish because he always comes home with something interesting.

Over the years, he has purchased a rubbish picker stick, a good, thick rubbish bag and thick gloves for picking up the nasty stuff.

Though the community is becoming more knowledgeable about the consequences of littering on our environment, Mr Knott hasn't seen a reduction in the amount of trash being thrown on the streets.

"I'm disappointed that people drop rubbish on the curb these days. Dubbo has curbside pickup, but if they have a lounge they just put it out [on the street], and it makes the area look untidy," Mr Knott said.

He would like to see tougher penalties and more policing of people littering.

"Please, be careful where you put your litter," Mr Knott said.

"It is sad to think there is litter around, and I'd like to say the right word so people say, 'Oh jeez, I wont throw litter out [on the street] anymore, but there's no magic word."

Mr Knott has even approached one of the local supermarkets to offer to tidy up their car park which he describes as "pretty filthy".

"I just can't stand rubbish," he said.

The dedicated litter picker upper is a member of the Dubbo RiverCare Group, which meets every two weeks to tidy up rubbish and plant trees and shrubs along the Macquarie-Wambuul River banks.

Mr Knott and the group were among 63 volunteers, as well as a group from Central West Leadership Academy school, who participated in Clean Up Australia Day on Sunday, March 3, collecting 23 big bags of rubbish.