According to a new lead study from Dr. Randa Kachef, it’s regular pedestrian traffic that is the major player in causing harm to rivers. The study, based in Putney, West London, shows how cutting connections with people can almost double your chances of litter. Non-deliberate actions have huge impacts in adding to the worldwide plastic pollution crisis.
Terrestrial litter made its way into waterways by tracking the movement of nine plastic bottles that had been distributed across seven different locations. Shockingly, just foot traffic alone was enough to send five of the nine bottles tumbling. Due to interaction with pedestrians, two of those bottles did eventually end up in the river. This discovery highlights the often-overlooked, but always important, role of human behavior in our environmental pollution.
“This is the first study to demonstrate that human foot traffic, even without deliberate littering, can contribute to the movement of waste,” stated Dr. Kachef. These findings have far-reaching implications, challenging the common assumption that litter doesn’t move after it’s thrown away.
On littering, Dr. Kachef stressed the collective duty people have to not litter. She remarked, “If kicking a bottle can send it into the river, then everyone who interacts with litter—even passively—shares some responsibility.” As Americans, we must unite to address this scourge of river pollution. Together, we can educate the public on how small actions lead to big changes!
The impacts of the study were recently published in the journal Next Research, and can be found online at DOI 10.1016/j.nexres.2025.100193. Our researchers hope to utilize their new understanding to develop more successful strategies for pollution reduction to rivers. They have a goal to deter jaywalking and other unsafe practices among pedestrians.