A young French woman living in Luxor is beginning a clean water campaign initiative, along with her friends, to prevent solid waste in Egypt’s Nile.

“My love for Egypt and its Pharonic civilization prompted me to leave France and come live close to the country’s historic monuments,” said Marie Derbecourt, who has been living in Egypt for the past four years.

Dubbing her initiative as “Save The Nile”, Derbecourt teamed up friends and locals two weeks ago to clean the Nile of plastic, solid wast and trash, which are usually thrown away by hotels’ restaurants and cruises, resulting in water contamination.

“I love the Nile so much, it’s so beautiful, and it saddens me to see Egyptians treating it this way. It’s why I decided to start taking steps against it,” she said, adding that she has already gathered large amounts of plastics that she plans to recycle.

According to the Director General of the General Directorate of Nile Protection, Badri Sayed Mahmoud, in Luxor, Derbecourt asked for the directorate’s support and was “immediately welcomed.”
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“We plan to facilitate all measures and coordinate effectively to help save the Nile’s water from pollution and uncivilized acts,” Mahmoud said.

Head of the water resources and irrigation sector in Upper Egypt sat with the young woman to field support required for the initiative.

French woman starts initiative to protect Luxor’s Nile from contamination