Fish Stickers on Tampere Drains Show Where Street Litter Ends Up
Perch and pike stickers will be placed on street-drain covers in Tampere to show how everyday litter on streets can flow directly into nearby waterways.
The City of Tampere will place perch and pike stickers on street-drain covers to show how everyday litter on streets can flow straight into nearby waterways. The decals are part of Mahanpuruja muovista, an annual anti-plastic campaign organised by Pidä Saaristo Siistinä, and aim to make a normally unnoticed piece of infrastructure visible. "Rubbish tossed into a drain does not disappear," says Katja Rytkönen of Pidä Saaristo Siistinä. It can be carried by rain and meltwater into rivers and lakes, and ultimately reach the Bothnian Bay via Kokemäenjoki. A 2022 study cited by the campaign found most drain litter comes from consumers; cigarette butts were particularly common and release microplastics and harmful substances that can reach aquatic animals. Nicotine pouches are a growing problem too: a 2025 survey in the Aura River area ranked them the third most common litter item, even outnumbering cigarette butts in places. Organisers urge people to use pocket ashtrays or dispose of butts and nicotine pouches in mixed waste bins. The initiative also complements Tampere's recent cleanup work, following the city's spring cleanup drive and the mobilisation of volunteer teams in May that organised 56 volunteer teams to tidy parks and streets.
Earlier coverage
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