Ode to the Guardians of the Last Line, the Litter Trap Wardens.

Salute William Banda, Gift Masalemu, David Bristow, Mike Ryder, Tarryn Johnston, Litterboom, Zandvlei Trust volunteers and the many other brave souls all around the planet, who are the last line defence between us and Plastageddon.

Every year, 5 million metric tons of plastics enter our ocean down the rivers.

Oh ye, unseen sentinels of the stream,

Oh ye, unseen sentinels of the stream,

Whose labour flows unsung in daylight’s gleam,

Toil-bent and steadfast by the river’s course,

Holding back the tide, the unyielding force.

Where waters mourn beneath a plastic shroud,

Your courage cries aloud, aloud!

Beneath the weight of castaway despair,

You stand, unyielding, breathing foulest air.

The flotsam mocks with jagged, glinting grin,

A testament to folly's ceaseless sin.

And yet, your hands—unyielding, scarred, and strong—

Raise against this endless wrong.

Risking life and limb by polluted shore,

You guard the gates where no one guards before.

For surfers, swimmers, sailors, unaware,

Of the silent strife you boldly bear.

No laurels crown your sweat-soaked brow,

Yet history owes you here and now.

Oh keepers of rivers, these veins of earth,

Through which flows life, despair, and worth.

You stave off the Plastageddon's grim tide,

A drowning world where beauty once thrived.

The fish that leap, the reeds that sigh,

All owe their breath to those who try.

You judge the towns, the cities, the lands,

Not by their wealth, but by your hands.

For rivers speak what man would hide -

Their truth flows dark with guilt’s great tide.

Yet you, brave souls, hold back disgrace,

The river’s saviours, the earth’s embrace.

No banners wave, no trumpets call,

No marble halls will tell it all.

But we who know will sing your name,

And cast your deeds in lasting fame.

For on the brink of nature's end,

It is you who stood, unbreakable friend.

So rise, oh wardens, brave and true,

The rivers whisper thanks to you.

For in your fight, hope flows again,

And life returns where death had lain.

Between us and doom’s relentless claim,

You stand, heroes without name.

Salute William Banda, Gift Masalemu, David Bristow, Mike Ryder, Tarryn Johnston, Litterboom, Zandvlei Trust volunteers and the many other brave souls all around the planet, who are the last line defence between us and Plastageddon.

Every year, 5 million metric tons of plastics enter our ocean down the rivers.