Canoe Trail is serious about the environment, we have been cleaning up plastics, writing about sustainability, and even twinning our woodland composting toilets with the Philippines.
In fact, most days whether on the river, out hiking, or exploring our countryside we collect plastics and other people’s rubbish #everydaywomble.
For Canoe Trail’s Ash and Rich this is something they live and breathe with a passion for wild swimming, canoeing, kayaking and SUP’s. Rich has been on a mission since almost a decade ago whilst sea kayaking from Scotland to Ireland he arrived on a deserted storm beach at night to find 82 pieces of plastic in a 5 square metre area. Since then the team have literally removed tonnes of plastic and rubbish.
Plastic Patrol is a fantastic initiative to help combat plastics in our rivers and countryside with a brilliant App to count the plastic by brand and or type of plastic. Lizzie Carr who previously paddled the length of Britain on a Stand Up Paddle Board counting plastics as she went is the founder so we were delighted to meet and support this partnership in Bedford.
We had over 30 volunteers for the river clean up removing fishing hooks, lines, lures, plastics, cans, a shopping trolley or two and other pollution. In fact despite the river being clean with trout, otters, kingfishers and herons there was still plenty to remove. The team of volunteers were provided their SUP’s (stand up paddle boards) free of charge by Canoe Trail and Bedford Borough Council supported the event by removing the rubbish and waste.
Plastic Patrol are on a mission with lots of clean up events around the country and the target to remove one million pieces of plastic.
6th July 2019 Plastic Patrol in Bedford
We were amazed as over 30 people joined us for the Plastic Patrol with over 10 bags of cans and plastic bottles removed from the river and banks. The team got really into the challenge with people disappearing into the undergrowth to get stray plastic bottles and other detritus. The event was led by Lizzie Carr alongside Richard Harpham, adventurer, Tom Harwood, part of SUP Bedford and Max McMurdo TV presenter on upcycling and recycling.