An event to save the Bodrog River

From 10 to 14 September 2025, the VI. Bodrog PET Cup will take place along the Bodrog River, between Sárazsadány and Bodrogkeresztúr. The event is organised by the Plastic Cup Society, with the support of the Ministry of Energy (Hungary), the DALIA Danube Lighthouse project, and the Interreg Hungary-Slovakia Programme, within the framework of the #gobodrog project and Interreg Cooperation Day.

Programme highlights

• Cleanup race on the river – over 100 volunteers will paddle in canoes and plastic bottle boats, collecting waste as they go.

• Community activities – exhibition on the history of the Plastic Cup, local food and drinks, and the River Litter Lab where children will turn plastic waste into new objects.

• 12 September, Olaszliszka – festive opening of the new Riversaver Centre, a place for river cleanups, workshops, and community gatherings.

• 13 September, Szegi – the cleanup continues, with volunteers welcomed by the municipality, another partner of the #gobodrog project.

Why it matters

The Bodrog is much more than a waterway. Flowing from the Carpathians through Ukraine, Slovakia and Hungary, it creates the unique microclimate of the Tokaj wine region, a UNESCO World Heritage site known worldwide. Yet this river of cultural and environmental significance faces a hidden challenge: floods carry tonnes of plastic and waste downstream, leaving an estimated 90 tonnes of litter stranded in its floodplain forests on the Hungarian section alone.

When the Plastic Cup team discovered this situation in 2017, they decided to act. By 2020, the first cleanup race was held on the Bodrog, transforming the river into both a route for action and a symbol of cooperation. The following year, the initiative became transnational, starting in Slovakia and continuing downstream into Hungary.

Over five editions, volunteers have removed around 45 tonnes of waste from the Bodrog. More importantly, the movement has inspired schools, municipalities and local residents to organise their own cleanups, proving that collective action can make a visible difference.

The mission

The Plastic Cup and the #gobodrog project are not only about removing waste. Their goal is to foster what they call “river li(t)teracy” – helping people to understand rivers, appreciate their value, and take responsibility for them. The new Riversaver Centre in Olaszliszka is a concrete step in this direction: a place where communities can find tools, knowledge and encouragement to protect their river.

The VI. Bodrog PET Cup will therefore be more than a cleanup. It will be a shared effort to give back to the Bodrog, a river that sustains life, culture and heritage, and one that deserves a cleaner, healthier future.