It is now decided! These will clean the waterways in Vestland

Through the cleanup of four rivers and parts of watercourses in Vestland, the Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund will test various methods for cleaning along the rivers and watercourses in Norway, and get a better estimate of the amounts of plastic found in the watercourses. The pilot will hopefully form the basis for announcing more and larger cleanup tasks in the rest of the country.

– Now it is confirmed, and we can congratulate Novumare, the Institute of Marine Research, and the Norwegian Society for the Conservation of Nature on their victory. We are very pleased to have with us experienced, skilled, and committed cleanup operators, says Cecilie Lind, CEO of the Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund.
From sea to river and river to sea

Both the Institute of Marine Research and Novumare have previously received support for cleanup in and by the sea. Now it is the rivers and watercourses that will be targeted.

– The rivers are prioritized because waste in rivers in Western Norway often has a short journey before it ends up in the sea.
If we manage to stop the plastic before it reaches the sea, we have a much easier job cleaning it up, says
Lind.

Cleanup starts in April

Bergen and Omland Outdoor Recreation Council is the administrator for the task.
– There has long been a need for a proper effort for our watercourses. Now the operators are in place, and the cleanup will start as early as April. Together we will get the ownerless marine waste cleaned, says Gudrun Kristin Fatland in Bergen and Omland Outdoor Recreation Council.