Sweden to hold national litter cleanup day on September 20

The organization Håll Sverige Rent is organizing the ninth annual ‘Hela Sverige plockar skräp’ (All of Sweden picks up litter) on September 20. This national initiative coincides with the United Nations’ World Cleanup Day, encouraging citizens across the country to clean up streets, forests, and public squares.

A recent national litter measurement conducted by Håll Sverige Rent on behalf of the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Naturvårdsverket) reveals that an average one-kilometer walk in a Swedish city passes approximately 1,000 pieces of litter. Notably, 93 percent of this waste consists of single-use products, and more than half contains plastic. Common items include cigarette butts, snus, and food or snack packaging.

Littering imposes a significant economic burden, with Swedish municipalities reporting annual costs of nearly 600 million SEK for waste management. Beyond environmental and animal harm, the campaign aims to shift long-term social norms and behaviors. Over the past five years, approximately 750,000 Swedes have participated in the cleanup day, collecting nearly 1,600,000 kg of waste.