Two beach clean-up days were staged in the area on Saturday, one organised by Keep Dunedin Beautiful and the other by the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association.
Keep Dunedin Beautiful co-ordinator Allison Wallace said both events were timed to coincide with nationwide Clean Up Week, organised by Keep New Zealand Beautiful, which officially begins today.
The week, sponsored by G.J Gardner Homes, features about 100 events nationwide and 12 to 15 held in Dunedin, Miss Wallace said.
About 40 volunteers at Keep Dunedin Beautiful's event at St Kilda had removed 331kg of rubbish from the area around Marlow Park and John Wilson Ocean Dr, over three hours.
Among the volunteers were members of the King's High School under-15 Panthers rugby team, she said.
Materials recovered included plastic and glass bottles, which could be recycled, as well as fast-food wrappings and a shopping trolley.
Of the materials recovered, 105kg could be diverted from landfill and recycled, she said.
Further down the coastline, another 45 people joined the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association's clean-up, removing 385kg of rubbish and recycling 55kg of it, she said.
The clean-up helped stop rubbish entering the marine environment, as 80% of rubbish on land made its way to waterways, she said.
"We are trying to stop it before it reaches the ocean," she said.
