As part of a project we are carrying out for the Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning at the Slovenian Water Institute, we investigated the presence of macro-litter on the banks of the Dragonja and Rižana rivers.
We collected a variety of waste items from sample areas which the rivers could carry out to sea. The composition of the waste is comparable to that found on parts of the Slovenian coastline, with plastic waste predominating in terms of quantity.
Of particular interest, however, are the findings indicating the presence of ‘older’ waste. This is waste that has most likely spent several decades in unauthorised dumps and has found its way back into the rivers.
This leads us to the realisation that all our littering on land affects the amount of litter in the sea, which is the final destination for this waste.
Figure 1: Litter along the River Rižana, predominantly plastic waste.
Figures 2 and 3: Remains of a shoe found on the bank of the River Rižana (left) and a spade overgrown with moss (right).