Most plastic in our oceans comes from rivers, so tackling that pollution at its source is essential. But how do you do that in rivers that flow through several countries, like the Danube and Tisza? Water Matters went to Hungary to meet the teams trying to do just that.
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00:00Plastic bottles, metal cans and even fridges or tires.
00:05Most of the plastic in our oceans comes from rivers,
00:08so it's vital to stop that pollution at its source.
00:11But how do you clean up plastic in the Danube,
00:14a river which runs through nearly a dozen European countries?
00:17We're in Hungary to meet the teams trying to do just that.
00:24We're often told we're in an ecological race to save the planet.
00:27These volunteers have taken that to heart.
00:30They've gathered on Hungary's river Tisza,
00:32the Danube's longest tributary, for the Plastic Cup,
00:35a competition to collect as much junk as possible.
00:39You'd think a place like this would be pristine,
00:41but everywhere there are discarded bottles and just general plastic waste.
00:48The Tisza and Danube flow through several countries,
00:51so what happens upstream can have a huge impact further down the river.
00:56To find out more, I spoke to Plastic Cup's project leader.
01:00It's coming from the upstream countries.
01:03How much plastic have you managed to fish out?
01:05Usually we can collect around 1,000 kilograms a day,
01:10so one ton a day keeps the waste away.
01:15Around 150 volunteers joined this clean-up.
01:18It's always good fun making friends and having a blast and doing good.
01:22This is my first time at the Pet Cup,
01:24and I hope that every year there will be less and less trash to collect.
01:28Almost half the Earth's surface waters are in river basins
01:31shared by at least two countries.
01:34There is a lot of pollution going on, I think, in every river globally.
01:37The Danube is transferring 1,500 tons of plastic.
01:41The Tisza is around 250, and we can stop 100 tons per year.
01:46And stop it getting to oceans?
01:48Yes, absolutely.
01:49OK, let's leave this clean-up for a moment and check out another event.
01:53It's called Danube Day.
01:57Europe-wide, this workshop at Hungary's Water Museum in Esztergom
02:00taught children about the river's ecological importance.
02:04It was also a chance to find out from those managing the country's waterways
02:08what's being done to tackle plastic pollution.
02:10How are you doing?
02:11Hello, Paul.
02:12What we can do in this is
02:15to collect waste water and move it away from the Tisza and other rivers.
02:19We can also monitor plastic pollution.
02:23The situation has improved a lot, which is good news,
02:25but the ultimate solution would be to strengthen international cooperation and partnership.
02:33Working as a team, then, to address the issue.
02:36Yeah, we need cooperative stakeholders, companies, NGOs, decision-makers,
02:42everybody to clean up the Tisza Basin and the Danube Basin as well.
02:45It's just very logical legislation and then action.
02:51That's it for this episode. See you soon for more Water Matters.