River Action unveils provocative ‘Pooster’ to expose water companies profiting while poisoning our water
A group of wild swimmers fed up with dirty money making water dirty
- A billboard made of £50 notes, stained brown with waste reads “This money is stained with crap, just like water company profits”
- The ‘Pooster’ is on display in central London, serving as a reminder of the crisis at hand and inspiring people to join the March for Clean Water on November 3rd
The making of the Pooster – WATCH HERE
London: In partnership with creative agency Uncharted and Global, the Media & Entertainment Group, River Action has launched a bold new advertising campaign highlighting the shocking reality of water companies making billions while polluting the UK’s rivers, lakes, and seas.
River Action has kicked off the campaign by unveiling a billboard in central London dubbed the ‘Pooster. The huge six-meter-wide special build is constructed from fake £50 notes, stained brown with sterilized waste and water from polluted beaches, rivers and streams across the UK, symbolizing the dirtied profits that water companies continue to make at the expense of the environment. The ‘Pooster’ displays a bold caption, ‘This money is stained with crap, just like water company profits’.
The billboard is located near Vauxhall Station, Central London – a high-traffic area in close proximity to the Thames – to draw maximum attention.
This striking visual dirty protest is part of River Action’s wider campaign against water pollution ahead of a March for Clean Water, set to take place in central London on November 3rd.
The campaign exposes an uncomfortable truth: despite dividend payouts to shareholders totaling £72.9 billion over the last 33 years and massive levels of executive pay and bonuses, water companies across the UK are failing to protect waterways.
Campaigns Manager of River Action Amy Fairman said, “Water companies like Thames Water are up to their necks in it, treating our rivers, seas and lakes like open sewers. Our ‘Pooster’ drives home the point: the financial gains they make are filthy money. It’s time for change. The UK public is fed up with sewage-drenched waterways and our campaign demands urgent reform.”
The “Pooster” creative was developed by Uncharted, a creative agency founded by three of the most prominent leaders in the industry: Laura Jordan Bambach, Hannah Hattie Matthews and Fern Miller. Uncharted worked with Global, the Media & Entertainment group, to bring the poster to life on Global’s outdoor estate.
Laura Jordan Bambach, Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer at Uncharted said: “Uncharted is proud to join forces with our great friends at Global and River Action on this vital campaign. The disturbing and complex challenge of crafting a pooster that’s safe even for us to handle speaks volumes. If it’s this tough for our team, just imagine the state of every waterway and beach across the UK.”
With public outrage at an all-time high, River Action’s billboard is shining a spotlight on the urgent need for reform in the water industry.
In addition to out-of-home special build, audio ads voiced by comedian Jo Brand will be played out across all of Global’s radio brands including LBC, Heart and Capital, promoting the upcoming march.
The campaign will build momentum ahead of the March for Clean Water on Sunday 3rd November where thousands of people, alongside over 100 organizations as diverse as Extinction Rebellion and the National Trust, will demand action from the government against water polluters.
For safety reasons, unlike the carelessness of the water companies, the ‘Pooster’ was made using sterilized waste diluted with water collected from rivers, beaches, and streams across the UK.
River Action is an environmental charity on a mission to rescue Britain’s rivers from the deluge of pollution that has left the majority of our waterways in a severely degraded ecological condition. Our campaigns to date have focused on tackling the severe environmental crises created by both sewage and agricultural pollution.
The March for Clean Water will be a legal, peaceful, family-friendly and inclusive demonstration. On Sunday 3rd November, we will muster at Albert Embankment from 1100, and start marching at 1145. The rally will start in Parliament Square at 1330 and is due to finish by 1500.
To date, 100 organizations have pledged their support for the march including the National Trust, Women’s Institute, RSPB, Wildlife Trusts, Extinction Rebellion, Greenpeace, WWF, Surfers Against Sewage, Angling Trust, The Rivers Trust, Wildfish, British Rowing, Save Windemere, Good Law Project, Clean Ilkley River Group, Activist Anglers, Save the Wye Coalition, BlueTits and Henley Mermaids.
Credits:
River Action
Head of Campaigns, River Action: Amy Fairman
Uncharted
Chief Creative Officer: Laura Jordan Bambach
Creative / Copywriter: Fiona White
Creative / Designer: Aidan Lee
Producer: Kal Parmer
Chief Strategy Officer: Fern Miller
Chief Exec: Hattie Matthews
Video Editor: Chris Cooper
Creative Special Design: Fabrication
Global
Director of Creative Strategy: Nick Russell
Head of Outdoor Business Development: Jane Lee
Partnerships Manager, Creative Solutions: Ian Cox
Head of Outdoor Creative Solutions: Julia Edgington
Group Copy Manager: Jonathan Wood
Senior Creative Producer, Audio: Dave Bush
Voiceover Artist: Katrina Ridley