Llandysul Paddlers club in Carmarthenshire fighting to protect River Teifi from pollution

It's been a common sight to see rafts and canoes along the River Teifi for almost 3 decades. The Llandysul Paddlers Canoe Club was founded in 1984 to give locals and people further afield an opportunity to paddle on the river which lies between Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion.

Now, the club's activities are increasingly being disrupted by waste washing down the river.

Gareth Bryant, Centre Manager at Llandysul Paddlers says the rubbish they've seen along the Teifi includes plastic bin liners, wood pallets and a tumble dryer rolling down the water.

Volunteers cleaning-up the River Teifi earlier in the year Credit: Llandysul Paddlers

Gareth said: "We organised 3 river clean-ups earlier in the year and we had around 50 volunteers getting in the water and on the river banks.

"On the last clean-up we did we had 10 tons of rubbish that came out of the Teifi.

"It's a beautiful setting here, and the last thing you want is for people to be paddling through a rubbish tip."

Around 50 volunteers took part in the clean-up with the canoe club. Credit: Llandysul Paddlers

It was reported earlier in the year that the River Teifi was one of the worst rivers in England and Wales for Sewage Pollution in 2022.

Joey Chapman has been a whitewater guide with the Llandysul Paddlers for 8 years. He said: "It's been heartbreaking hasn't it?

"It's gone from showing somebody on a trip that's normally beautiful to being surrounded by rubbish in the river.

Joey Chapman: "We need to keep our river clean"

"My little boy, I want to take him on the Teifi and I want him to have the opportunities everyone else has.

"Unfortunately it's not the same if there's rubbish in it, people aren't going to want their kids to come down kayaking. We need to keep it clean."

It’s an ongoing battle to protect the River Teifi from pollution.  Locals and members of the canoe club continue to watch over the river with plans for further clean-ups in the future.