Some held signs and placards calling for clean oceans while others wore costumes as people were seen paddle-boarding out into the ocean.
Among the demands from activists was an end to sewage discharges into all bathing and high-priority nature sites by 2030.
The campaign, coordinated by Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), saw protests at more than 30 locations.
In Brighton, Olympic gold medal runner and keen paddleboarder Dame Kelly Holmes addressed demonstrators through a megaphone before leading dozens in a paddle-out.
In Falmouth, surfers paddled out en-masse while sea-kayakers carried placards on their boats calling for fish not faeces. Meanwhile, more than 200 people entered the water at a wild swimming spot at Ferris Meadow Lake in Surrey.
Emma Jackson, who organised the Shepperton Open Water Swim event, said she was contacted by SAS after setting up a campaign to save the lake from the River Thames Scheme, which will build a new flood relief channel through the area.
She said the lake naturally cleans itself and was much safer to swim in than the Thames but, under the proposal, the lake would be connected to the river, leaving it in danger of contamination.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May 19, 2024 من The Independent.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May 19, 2024 من The Independent.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Labour pledges to fix one million potholes every year
Labour has pledged to fix 1 million potholes every year if elected on 4 July and turn the tide on the \"neglect\" of the UK's roads.
Farage backs out of BBC interview amid Hitler row
Nigel Farage pulled out of a high-profile BBC interview as his Reform UK party faces a row over whether the UK should have appeased Hitler.
What do the Tories plan to do about the housing crisis?
Politicians, and especially party leaders, tend not to like admitting mistakes, and still less failure.
Minister's fight to preserve ECHR in Sunak's manifesto
A series of secret tapes have exposed the depth of the Tory civil war over the prospect of ditching the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
Sunak showers voters with promises he'll never deliver
The launch of the Conservative Party manifesto yesterday - with the promise of tax cuts worth £17.2bn a year by the end of the next five-year parliament - represented Rishi Sunak's last throw of the dice.
Rishi was revved for launch, but it stalled before it began
\"I'm all revved up and ready to go,\" said Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, standing in front of the Silverstone racetrack.
Sunak vows to cut taxes by £17bn and halve migration
Rishi Sunak drew comparisons with his predecessor Liz Truss and her disastrous mini-Budget as he unveiled a manifesto containing £17bn of tax cuts.
Battle for a different No 10 may shape England's future
While Keir Starmer's arrival in Downing Street now seems a foregone conclusion, another battle for No 10 this summer looks rather tougher to call.
Clay champions don't need rub of the green in SW19
Iga Swiatek called it a \"huge challenge\", while Carlos Alcaraz wanted to enjoy his third grand slam title before turning his mind to emulating Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
Germany hoping for a home run after decade of decline
In the wake of several disastrous tournaments, the Euro 2024 hosts are showing signs they can challenge top sides again