Last year, no less than 170,000 people mobilized in France, with colossal “loot”: 1,002 tonnes of waste collected, including 200 products recyclable, reports the association. World Cleanup Day is making a comeback this Saturday, September 16. To participate, it’s simple, just go on the dedicated websiteto see what actions are nearby, and to go there. Elodie Fosseux, national coordinator of the association, tells us more.
How long has World Cleanup Day existed?
The movement began in Estonia in 2007. Rainer Nolvak, the initiator of this movement, realized that all countries were collecting their waste, each in their own corner. It seemed necessary to him to coordinate all these cleanings. Today, there are 190 countries and territories working in waste collection.
France is also in the top 15 of the most mobilized countries. For this 2023 edition, I think we will reach at least 4,000 CleanUps [actions] almost everywhere in France, from the Paris region to Creuse via Occitanie. It is particularly on the coasts that the missions focus.
Is the number of operations and participants increasing?
We had a before and after Covid-19. For the first edition [en France], in 2018, there were 200,000 of us. A figure which increased the following year (265,000 people), but we were caught up by this crisis. As a result, in 2020, there were 139,000 of us, which still remains very positive.
It has become an annual event for quite a few people, so we are expecting hundreds of thousands of people this Saturday.
What is the most problematic waste?
The biggest scourge is cigarette butts. Small in size, but big in its impact: a cigarette butt is 500 liters of polluted water… It’s our biggest workhorse to be honest.
Don’t you have the impression, sometimes, that it’s a waste of time?
I am convinced that our actions have an impact because we learn through action. When you pick up waste, you are already saying that its impact is negative and that you should not leave it there; it can at least dissuade you from throwing it on the ground.
Our goal, ultimately, is to no longer exist, so that there is no more waste and that we no longer talk about it. We plant seeds in people’s minds by making them aware that collection is an everyday issue.