The Dunedin girl was among about 100 people who volunteered their time for a Seaweek community clean-up at the popular Dunedin beach.
Piper said she did not like it when people left their rubbish behind, but she liked coming to the beach.
Seaweek was a celebration of New Zealanders’ connection to the coast, Keep Dunedin Beautiful co-ordinator Allison Wallace said.
Miss Wallace said children as young as 3 years old, Taieri College pupils and University of Otago students were among the young people helping on Saturday. Families often attended beach clean-ups as they were an easy activity for children to take part in, she said.
The Department of Conservation had staff on hand to talk to people about human-wildlife interactions. The area is home to a variety of wildlife, but New Zealand sea lions especially have recently frequented the area and nearby John Wilson Ocean Dr is popular with dog walkers.
