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Canal Clean-Ups Are Back!

Students and staff work together to take care of the canal that runs next to Mile End campus by fishing out the litter. All sessions are open to everyone to join in and help our canal thrive a little bit more. This semester's days are alternating Wednesdays and Thursdays, so check the dates below to get involved.

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Students standing by the canal on campus after cleaning up the litter with nets and litter pickers.

Every week, Queen Mary volunteers don high-visibility vests, litter pickers and nets to clean up Regents' Canal.

According to Canal and River Trust, 14 million pieces of plastic rubbish end up in canals and rivers across England and Wales. This negatively affects wildlife through damaging their habitats and diets. Cleaning up the canal and disposing of waste properly reduces these effects and stops the waste from ending up in the ocean to do further damage.

We commonly remove packaging such as plastic bags and bottles from the canal, with the occasional shoe or onion. Last year's largest finds include a shopping trolley and a pink scooter with functioning light-up wheels! This litter is non-biodegradable and sometimes releases toxic by-products, harming wildlife and people, so volunteering with us can make a big difference to the local area.

A shopping trolley submerged in Regent's Canal

The Canal Clean-Ups will be on alternating Wednesdays and Thursdays at 12:30-1:30 on the following dates:

 

  • Wednesday 25th October
  • Thursday 2nd November
  • Friday 17th November (for the Big Green Canal Clean)
  • Wednesday 22nd November
  • Thursday 30th November
  • Wednesday 6th December
  • Thursday 14th December

To join a Canal Clean-Up or host your own, you can email the Sustainability Team at sustainability@qmul.ac.uk.

 

 

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