May Day celebrations in Kaivopuisto leave park littered with waste
Tens of thousands of people gathered in Kaivopuisto on May Day, enjoying warm weather and traditional festivities, but the celebrations left behind a significant cleanup challenge. Police estimated the turnout at the popular Helsinki park, reporting that the event proceeded calmly despite the large crowd (Iltalehti).
The day marked Finland’s warmest May Day in 18 years, with temperatures reaching around 20 degrees Celsius. As the sun set, many revelers moved on to continue their celebrations elsewhere, leaving behind a trail of litter across the park (Iltalehti). By early Saturday morning, Kaivopuisto resembled a scene of widespread waste, with empty bottles, disposable plates, and other debris scattered across the lawns.
Carl Rosenlöf, a City of Helsinki employee who arrived for cleanup duties around 5 a.m., noted that the amount of litter was typical for a warm May Day. "This is the main spot where everyone comes to sit for a picnic. The amount of litter people leave behind always depends on the weather. The weather was good this time, and it certainly shows," he said (Ilta-Sanomat).
The waste included sparkling wine and champagne bottles, boxed wine cans, plastic and cardboard cups, as well as larger items such as camping chairs, inflatable mattresses, blankets, and even clothing. Many of the designated trash bins were overflowing, while much of the litter remained uncollected on the ground (Ilta-Sanomat).
Kaivopuisto, one of Helsinki’s most well-known park areas, was far from its usual idyllic state on Saturday morning. Visually, the most common type of waste appeared to be empty alcohol bottles, with the park’s green spaces strewn with debris from the previous day’s festivities (Ilta-Sanomat).