SeaKeepers X Up River Yacht Club Cadet Week Clean-up

On August 28, 2026, The International SeaKeepers Society joined Up River Yacht Club in Hullbridge, Essex, as part of the club’s annual Cadet Week. 14 participants took part in the afternoon, beginning with a hands-on water quality testing session where the cadets measured the temperature, turbidity, pH level and dissolved oxygen of the River Crouch. The group then carried out a clean-up along the river before sorting and recording the litter collected using the Marine Debris Tracker app. Some of the most common items found included food wrappers, plastic fragments and cigarette butts.

The International SeaKeepers Society hosted the activity in collaboration with Up River Yacht Club, combining environmental education with direct action in the local area. The session gave the cadets the opportunity to learn more about the health of their local waterways while contributing to the protection of the River Crouch. A huge thank you to everyone who took part and to Up River Yacht Club for welcoming SeaKeepers during Cadet Week. SeaKeepers looks forward to working together again in the future.

During cleanups, SeaKeepers utilises Marine Debris Tracker, a data collection app that allows the public to record marine plastic pollution environments in an open-source database. The app was developed by the University of Georgia’s Jambeck Research Group, who have collaborated with SeaKeepers in 2021 and 2022 on Circularity Assessment Protocols in Miami and the Florida Keys. Data collected helps inform scientific findings and effective legislation. In this cleanup, 100% of volunteers used the app to record data. SeaKeepers is excited to continue incorporating this tool in our mission of coastal education, protection, and restoration.