A group of volunteers took on a river clean-up in March to tackle plastic pollution. 

The March RiverCare group worked on a stretch of the river Nene by removing litter and other bulky items as part of Keep Britain Tidy’s RiverCare and BeachCare programme.

The clean-up started at Wigstones Bridge and continued along the river bank down to West End Park and brought together local volunteers of all ages.

They removed seven bags of litter from their stretch of the Nene, alongside a piece of carpet and discarded clothing.

Cambs Times: Lots of items were collected from the River Nene. Lots of items were collected from the River Nene. (Image: Sally Bird)

Much of the litter collected were tiny pieces of plastic packaging that had been shredded when the banks had been cut.

"These very tiny pieces of litter would have easily made it into the waterway where they can easily cause damage to local wildlife or will eventually be washed out to the ocean," said Sally Bird from the March group. 

The March RiverCare group is one of almost 50 such groups which are part of the RiverCare are and BeachCare programme, which is run by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, and funded by Anglian Water.

The programme supports local groups to tackle litter, carry out wildlife surveys and habitat improvements to make a real difference to their local environment.

The next litter pick will be Sunday, July 16, at 10am on Nene Parade just by Wigstone Bridge. Everyone is welcome and all equipment will be provided. All we ask is that you dress sensibly for the weather and wear sensible footwear.

RiverCare and BeachCare groups have also raised awareness of locally important wildlife species (such as the white-clawed crayfish and the water vole), carried out wildlife surveys, removed invasive bankside plants and carried out restoration work.

For more information about RiverCare and BeachCare and how to get involved please visit www.rivercare.org.uk.