Fancy a free kayak tour?
As long as you pick up the trash, too, you can slide down the rivers and canals of Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Japan and Germany, thanks to an idea born in Copenhagen.
Called the Green Kayak, people are issued green canoes and equipped with a large bucket and two garbage collectors.
They are also provided with maps of waterways, indicating where protected birds or plants should be avoided.
After each trip, the litter pick-up is measured and recorded.
Germany is currently expanding the project established in Berlin, Hamburg, and Leipzig and is expected to expand to Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia.
It works. A stroll through the streets of Leipzig reveals surprisingly clean water – thanks to Green Kayak volunteers who have been paddling the city’s rivers and canals for a long time.
Birgit Paul from the organization Economy for the Common Good Central Germany started the project in Leipzig in May and is happy with the progress so far.
“In the first two months, 116 paddlers collected 206 kilograms of garbage,” he said.
There was a particularly rich selection when Germany hosted the European football championship. Leipzig was one of the 10 cities to host, visiting fans from all over the world.
The volunteers mainly collected beer bottles, cans, and plastic bags from the water. “There was really a lot to do,” said Paul.
Leipzig city officials see 20 to 25 tons of waste that accumulates and needs to be disposed of in the central water every year.
That number could rise as city officials say littering has increased in recent years.
The organization Economy for the Common Good Central Germany plans to offer more boats in Dresden and Halle next year, and in Jena the following year – and all three cities are looking forward to supporting the project.
But money is needed first. The organization needs sponsors before it can put boats in Dresden, Halle, Jena and the surrounding areas.
“In Halle, we want to park two boats and in Dresden it’s better to have two to four,” said Paul.
Oke Carstensen, 33, founder of the Danish NGO Green Kayak, who started the project in 2017 with a friend after completing his master’s degree in Copenhagen, is happy with Leipzig’s progress.
“It’s not bad at all for a completely new city. The high demand surprised us a lot,” he said.
Starting in Oslo was very difficult, he says. “For the first few years, we didn’t have many people in the water there.”
In total, Carstensen says, most areas see about 20 tons of trash collected every year. In Berlin, approximately 1,900 kilograms of waste will be collected in the water by 2023. Most of the waste is consumer products such as plastic packaging or cigarette butts.
“But we have already taken bicycles, e-scooters, or jewelry out of the water,” he said. The clothes are also unusual.
The project aims to bring people from different walks of life together to use kayaks for free, Carstensen said. “It is important to us that this offer is free and always free so that anyone who wants to give back to the environment can fully participate.”
After all, waste is created by humans and nature does not distinguish between the rich and the poor.
Young people can also get involved, says Paul. Economy for the Common Good Central Germany works with schools and a children’s restaurant in eastern Leipzig, “to introduce children to the topic of environmental protection in a simple way.”
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