Successful international cooperation has launched to keep our rivers clean – the first International River Cleanup Workshop in Kisköre

Group work on board the FLEX-Sárazsadány

Kisköre, 22 May 2025 – Between 11 and 15 May, the Riversaver Center at Kisköre hosted the first international Community River Cleanup Coordinator Training, strengthening environmental cooperation between the countries along the Danube. The five-day event was attended by students from seven countries, who gained theoretical and practical knowledge about the most modern methods and technologies necessary for cleaning rivers. 

"Riverine waste pollution is a problem that currently adversely affects more than 90% of the hydroelectric power plants in the Danube Basin. The technology and efficiency with which water management facilities deal with this problem is crucial. We are happy that Kisköre is getting more and more international attention – barely a month ago, we showed our riverine waste management practice to a group of German university students, and now we could provide a stage for a river cleanup coordinator training on the whole Danube River Basin level" – said Lőrinc Fejes, section engineer of Kisköre (Middle-Tisza Region Water Management Directorate - KÖTIVIZIG). 

Participants of the workshop rode bicycles between the locations

The training was carried out within the framework of the Interreg Danube Region Programme Aquatic Plastic project, with the support of the European Union Interreg fund and the Hungarian State. The opening and closing sessions took place in the panorama room of the section engineering department of KÖTIVIZIG in Kisköre, with a breathtaking view of the Tisza, the Lake Tisza, and the riverine waste accumulation in front of the Kisköre hydro-power plant (HPP). 

"Such trainings make it possible for the good practices developed in the Tisza River Basin, such as the multistakeholder management or the Riversaver School Network, to be applied in other countries as well," emphasized Zsuzsanna Bitter, chairman of the Plastic Cup Association. 

Csaba Szabó (SONAR) gives a presentation on the challanges of water river cleaning

The practical elements of the workshop took place in the floating community space and exhibition space called FLEX-Sárazsadány, which was established on an upcycled ferry from River Bodrog and became a unique event site in the region. The participants took part in community river cleanup (CRC) by boat and canoes as field exercise, got acquainted with the professional river cleanup tools used by KÖTIVIZIG, and also learned the community waste collection and riverine waste sorting methodology developed by the Plastic Cup. 

During the training, Aquatic Plastic's co-creation methodology helped to transfer knowledge quickly

"The students learned the good practices of the Plastic Cup in real life. They could personally observe the water quality protection activities of water authorities, and we presented them solutions developed in the Aquatic Plastic project. The riverine litter and environmental plastics they collected themselves was transformed into durable and useful objects under their hands – and they even built a plastic bottle boat as a team." – emphasized Attila Dávid Molnár, the leader of the workshop. 

A student from Montenegro tries out the Plastic Kayak made of riverine plastic

The workshop, in line with the objectives of the Aquatic Plastic project, presented a range of solutions for the cost-effective and sustainable management of riverine waste. The methods presented include the HYDR and KRKN river litter skimmer solutions of the Plastic Cup, which use the velocity of the river flow to divert floating waste and ensure a cleaner, better waste quality at the end of the cleanup process. 

An alternative riverine waste management solution called KRKN (kraken) operated by trained cleanup coordinators is in work

At the workshop, several experts experienced in the field of riverine plastic pollution and river cleanup gave presentations, providing up-to-date professional knowledge and examples of international good practices for the participants. The detailed program can be downloaded here. 

 Stefan Trdan, river and marine cleaning specialist (IWRS, Slovenia) also gave a presentation at the workshop

"The result of the work of the Plastic pirates – in partnership with KÖTIVIZIG – is the Lake Tisza Plastic Cup, which will be held for the 6th time this year (VI. Tisza Lake Plastic Cup: 12-15 June 2025) and this joint effort over the years will also provide the basis for this international workshop, where the training of future international river cleanup experts will begin," said Attila Lovas, director (KÖTIVIZIG).

Group photo in front of the Kisköre hydro-power plant

This workshop is another step in strengthening the environmental cooperation of the Danube region and plays an important role in increasing the environmental awareness of the young generations," said Gergely Hankó, managing director of KSZGYSZ and co-organizer of the workshop. 

Link to the mood video of the workshop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90fvKQAsvSg  

Group work on board the FLEX-Sárazsadány

The international workshop will continue in October (13-17 October), hosting international environmental and river cleanup experts at Kisköre, to deepen the cooperation of practicing river cleanup coordinators - establishing the foundation of a Danube Basin Riversaver Community.

Within the framework of the Aquatic Plastic project, the series of roundtables on the Tisza will also continue, which will also be an important meeting for Hungarian experts in October aimed to strenghten cooperation between national stakeholders for a cleaner Danube Basin. 

Workshop participants with river plastic collected with their own hands

This project is supported by the Interreg Danube Region Programme project co-funded by the European Union and with the contribution of the Member States.

Text: Anna Istenes (HAEE), Sára Bőhm (Plastic Cup Society)
Photos: Vanda Molnár, Emese Silimon, Sára Bőhm