These volunteer Trash Heroes collected almost seven kilos of rubbish

The Trash Heroes volunteer to clear streets and lakeside promenades of rubbish during their clean-up actions. We accompanied the founder of the local Zug group - and made an astonishing find.

A handful of children and adults stand by the bicycle racks next to Zug railway station. A certain sense of hectic is palpable. A blonde woman in a grey winter cap is fighting her way through a thorny bush below the tracks with a clothes hanger in her hand: "A bank card!" she shouts with a beaming face. Some passers-by are visibly taken aback by the crowd of people carrying black garbage bags, grappling tongs and wearing blue protective gloves.

The occasion is the Trash Heroes Zug Clean-up. This was initiated by Michèle Hess, a resident of Zug. In her spare time, the 41-year-old works for the globally active non-profit organisation Trash Hero:

"Throughour collection campaigns, we want to set an example and make people aware of the issue of plastic pollution."

She founded the Zug chapter of the Trash Hero movement in April 2022. On this cold Wednesday afternoon, she and numerous volunteers are searching the area around Zug railway station for litter. Nine children and seven adults are taking part, including a Ukrainian refugee. "I have the day off and wanted to help," explains Rodion Mygalyuk. The 36-year-old comes from western Ukraine and works as a parcel carrier in Baar. "I’m grateful for the government here, it gives us asylum and jobs - I want to give something back with my commitment."

He became aware of the clean-up via Facebook, where every collection campaign is published in advance. Michèle Hess organises these every month. "Everyone is welcome. We gather at the Bundesplatz and take different routes each time," she explains. She has already been to the lake, the EVZ stadium and the town hall.

Back to the mysterious bank card find in the bushes. The woman who made the discovery was Michèle Hess herself. Some of the participants hurry over to her, filled with curiosity. "There's more," she says to them. With vigorous effort, they now continue their search in the dense undergrowth. "Can you reach it?" a participant asks a child from the group and points into the overgrown bush. Together they fish out two bank cards, a TAN list, an ID and a damaged German passport.

They are all Trash Heroes and. on a cold Wednesday afternoon. they freed the city of Zug from almost seven kilograms of rubbish            Photo: Stefanie Geske
This bank card was lying in the bushes near Zug railway  station  Photo: Stefan Kaiser
An extraordinary find: Trash Hero Zug fished these bank cards, a passport, a TAN list and an ID out of the bushes near the railway station.         Photo: Stefan Kaiser
Organiser Michèle Hess
The children proudly show off their finds and sort the rubbish together with the adults     Photo: Michèle Hess
Young and old alike fish cigarette butts out of the remotest corners of Zug              Photo: Stefan Kaiser No one too small to be a trash hero. Well recognisable by the bright yellow T-shirt.               Photo: PD

"That's gross! Someone must have stolen a wallet and disposed of the stolen goods here," speculates Michèle Hess and puts the things in a separate compartment in her rubbish trolley. "I'll take this to the police," she says to the puzzled looking Trash Heroes.

The posse walks on, picking up carelessly dropped cigarette butts every five steps. Wearing bright yellow T-shirts and jumpers with the words "I'm a Trash Hero", they search every nook and cranny for unwanted litter. The group also examines the baskets of the bicycles parked at the station, as well as a defective railing with such a narrow cavity that only children's hands can get inside.

"The enthusiasm and commitment of the children are a highlight for me at every clean-up. In this way, the kids become sensitised to the problem of waste at an early age," says Michèle Hess on the way to the next stop.

Almost seven kilograms of waste
We continue towards the Bundesplatz, where a balance is drawn up. All the participants dump their "waste" on a canvas, and then sort out the rubbish together.

Michèle Hess then takes the rubbish to a small depot at the Werkhof (municipal service area), where it is weighed. The result:

Residual waste: 2.25 kg
Cigarette butts: 0.34 kg (corresponds to about 1,360 cigarettes)
Glass: 2.9 kg
PET: 0.86 kg
Aluminium: 0.29 kg

A total of 6.64 kilograms of waste was collected. This included 13 glass bottles, 12 aluminium cans, 10 PET bottles, a mobile phone case, a clothes hanger, a defective belt without a buckle, a baby’s pacifier, a 20-centimetre screwdriver and batteries. "I’m very satisfied," sums up Michèle Hess. During the approximately one-hour action, however, the organiser's puzzling find was to remain the absolute highlight.

Good cooperation with the city of Zug
Michèle Hess is allowed to store the collected litter in the depot of the Werkhof. Employees of the depot then dispose of it properly. "The cooperation with the city is very uncomplicated," she says, and she is grateful for the collaboration. The acrid smell of the waste creeps deeper and deeper into our reporter's nose. "I don't even smell it any more," Michèle Hess laughs and closes the depot.

About the Trash Hero movement
Trash Hero is a non-profit organisation of volunteers active in 17 countries that carries out cleanups worldwide. In Central Switzerland, Trash Heroes have so far been held in Zug and Lucerne.
The next trash collection event will take place in the city of Zug on 12 April 2023 from 2 to 4 pm. Meeting place: Bundesplatz.

Litter will be collected again In the city of Lucerne on 15 March 2023 at 5.45 pm. Meeting place: Lucerne University.