Yahoo Finance Asda teams up with Canal & River Trust for one of the UK's biggest canal clean ups
Asda is teaming up with Canal & River Trust to carry out one of the UK’s biggest and most ambitious canal clean-ups.
In what the supermarket is calling the “Adsa Big Canal Clean Up”, hundreds of employees will take to the water on paddle boards, canoes and boats to collect plastic and rubbish littered on the water and along the banks.
The initiative, which will run from 2 September to 6 September, will cover a 10-mile stretch of waterways, maintained by charity Canal & River Trust, that pass through the city of Leeds.
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Starting at Newlay Locks and finishing at Thwaites Mills, it will take place along the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the Aire and Calder Navigation.
Chris Brown at ASDA said: “As a proud Leeds-based company, we want everyone to be able to enjoy the waterways in our city, free from litter.
“We’re committed to tackling plastic waste in our own operations but also have a rolling programme of litter picks in communities across the UK to remove plastic and other litter from our local environments.
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14 million items of plastic end up in and around our canals and rivers ever year 😨 Can you help us with the #PlasticsChallenge? Find out more here: https://t.co/aDsu5v7B2J pic.twitter.com/w9SjvwAYZ8
— Canal & River Trust (@CanalRiverTrust) August 21, 2019
“The nation’s canal and rivers go through such a diversity of cities, towns and villages and this is reflected in our volunteers.”
The litter pick is part of Asda’s commitment to tackling unnecessary plastic. It has already removed 6,500 tonnes of own-brand plastic from its stores over the past 18 months.
Sean McGinley at Canal & River Trust said: “Canal & River Trust is on a mission to eradicate plastics from our vast network of canals and rivers – helping us all to live in better, more beautiful neighbourhoods, whilst tackling a global issue, and making life better by water.
“We’re really excited to be partnering with Asda to realise this ambitious project to help look after our canals, as beautiful, inspiring places for people to enjoy.
“Volunteering with the trust is a great opportunity for businesses and individuals alike to discover their local waterway and have fun while making a difference.”
