Canal It Up

We aim for a clean plastic-free canal in Brussels where nature has its place

IS THERE A PROBLEM?

Yes. The canal at the heart of Brussels has to face a constant stream of garbage, a lack of nature and a bad water quality.

HOW DO WE WANT TO INTERVENE?

RAISING AWARENESS

Every week with new volunteers we go fishing for trash in the canal with our kayaks.

INSTALLING A TRASH BARRIER

We are currently working on the installation of a permanent structure, to be placed close to the Molenbeek lock, to stop the trash and take it out of the water.

GREENING THE CANAL

We propose to give nature its place back in the canal to transform it into a green and pleasant environment for people and animals through the installation of vegetalised islands.

IMPROVING WATER QUALITY

Tackling the problem of the sewage overflows would allow to drasically improve the water quality of the canal.

RECYCLING

We are exploring creative solutions to recycle the trash collected in the canal.

SEWAGE DISCHARGE METER

Sainctelette: Overflow events in February

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To the canal

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To the Senne

Every month we count the number of days the Sainctelette and Maelbeek overflows are activated and publish the results here. These numbers are to be compared to the current Flemish standard according to which an overflow can only function 7 days per year. The overflows in Brussels exceed this annual amount almost every single month. Three overflows in particular are responsible for 75% of the discharged volume into the Senne and the canal.