Trap snaps up rubbish near Cologne’s Zoobrücke bridge
The panoramic cruises of Köln-Düsseldorfer Deutsche Rheinschiffahrt GmbH set sail several times a day from Cologne’s old town. On the one-hour round trips, guests experience Cologne from a unique perspective. They get to know the sights that immediately catch the eye. These include Cologne Cathedral, the Chocolate Museum and the “Crane Houses”. Others are less imposing, but no less impressive. A few metres from the Zoobrücke bridge, volunteers of the “K.R.A.K.E” association have anchored a litter trap on the Rhine.
Every tiny particle counts
The “Rheinkrake” litter trap has been in action at Rhine kilometre 690.3 since September 2022. Association members Kai Hirsch and Thorsten Kniewel estimate that the litter trap fishes out about one percent of all the rubbish in the water. That may not seem much considering the tonne of rubbish that flows down the Rhine every day, but Kai Hirsch emphasises: “Whatever stays in the trap doesn’t end up in the North Sea. When it comes to water pollution, every tiny particle counts.” A quick look into the litter trap shows how true this is. Among the pieces of wood, branches and foliage, bobbing in the broth are things like champagne corks, plastic and glass bottles, lighters, building rubble, insulation foam, a plastic football, tennis balls, a left flip-flop, foil and countless plastic and polystyrene balls.
Catch baskets open against the Rhine’s direction of flow
The litter trap is a 10 by 5 metre pontoon made of steel. Positioned between two floats, two catch baskets open against the river’s direction of flow. Large pieces of driftwood and tree trunks get caught on the huge rake at the bow of the structure so they cannot get into the trap. The stainless steel catch baskets are 3 metres wide, 5.80 metres long and 1.3 metres high, with around 50 centimetres protruding into the water. The rubbish caught is documented and scientifically analysed. A long-term study is being conducted in partnership with the University of Bonn. “The results are going to be used to make recommendations to political, administrative and civil society bodies,” says Thorsten Kniewel describing the long-term goal.
with KD Moment