Upstream Battle returns to River Clyde for data day

Members of our Campaigns team had their annual data gathering day last week, surveying along the River Clyde as part of our Upstream Battle campaign.

Seven #TeamKSB members managed to survey a 2km stretch of the River Clyde, from Rutherglen Bridge to Dalmarnock Bridge. Over the last two years the team surveyed the same area and identified a problem with food and drink packaging litter and have since worked with Glasgow City Council to install signage and bin wraps to encourage people to "Enjoy it on the way... Bin it on the go". With the messaging still present the team wanted to gather data to measure any impact.  

A total of 16 surveys were carried out, collecting three full bags of rubbish along 100m of the walkway.  

More than 500 items were counted during the survey, with the top three items found being snack packets, plastic pieces and paper fragments, accounting for 174 of the total counted.

No vapes were found along the surveyed route.

As with our survey at the same spot last year snack packets and plastic pieces were both in the top three littered items. This year the average number of items found over 100m was 32, a slight decrease of the 34 items per 100m last year.

While there was a decrease in the number of snack packets found this year (five, compared to nine), there was an increase in plastic lids and caps from takeaway coffee cups and plastic bottles, with 34 being found in total (eight more than in 2024), making it the fourth most littered item, whereas in 2023 it was not even in the top 10.  
 
Alongside items commonly littered, there was also some unusual finds including confetti, fireworks, a camping chair and 26 sport energy pouches.

The top five littered items found were:

• Snack packets (90)
• Drinks cans and bottles (61)
• Plastic pieces (43)
• Paper fragments (41)
• Plastic caps (34)

Hayley Roger, our Campaigns and Interventions Officer, said: “It was great to take part in my first Upstream Battle litter survey as the team returned to the Clyde. There was a huge variety of littered items but it was positive to see no vapes found following the introduction of the ban earlier this year.

"While this is just a small sample, it was disappointing to see so many single-use items littered along the walkway, reflecting our dependence on convenience and over-consumption.

"Our most recent Citizen Science report contained more than 100 litter surveys completed by community groups and individuals across Scotland which gave us a snapshot of the items polluting our waterways.

"This year we'd love to have even more to help us further identify the most significant contributors to the litter emergency and where we need to intervene to make a positive difference."

You can help us by collecting data along waterways and rivers near you. Find out more about Upstream Battle and how to get involved.