This is the touching moment a helpful dog collected pollution from the sea in China.

The brown pooch dived into the choppy water to retrieve trash drifting to the shore in Shandong on November 3.

Footage shows the canine swimming towards a floating Styrofoam cup. It then swam back to the riverbank and climbed the stairs to throw the item into a bin.

The filmer said: 'This dog is more human than us. It is a very smart dog who cares for the environment.'

A United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) study suggested that more than 40 per cent of bodies of water are severely polluted.

Researchers said that there is the equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic dumped into the world's oceans, rivers, and lakes. Plastic waste makes up 80% of all marine pollution.

Greta Thunberg is a Swedish environmental activist who became famous for raising awareness of climate change, especially among young people.