Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Why are we tolerant of (littered) trash?

Walk and see dirty, disgusting, degrading affronts to our city’s image.

Walk to work or walk around the block in your community neighborhood and challenge yourself to count the number of pieces of litter in a square block or even within one hundred feet. Look at the community’s highly shopped and respected storefronts and ask yourself why there is trash in front of some of these businesses.

Why are we tolerant of trash on our sidewalks, streets, parking lots, yards- our city?  Much of the litter on the streets ends up in our waterways. This non-phosphorus pollution is polluting our cherished waterways and overall landscape. Our discarded plastic is killing birds, marine and other wildlife.

Everyone can easily participate in this cause. Everyone can pick up a piece every day. Consider carrying an empty grocery bag with you on neighborhood walks. Notify business owners of the opportunity to improve their business facade by removing trash from the parking lot. Businesses can create litter patrols whereby their crews periodically remove litter along the street where the business is located.

We can grow an attitude of intolerance for litter just as we can grow pride and activism for attributes like Lake Champlain.
If enough people join in on a regular basis, well to quote Arlo Guthrie in Alice's Restaurant song, "And friends they may think it's a movement."
Everyone can make a direct impact on litter prevention and clean up.

How will you help? 

Voice your intolerance for litter to retailers / businesses by using the Clean Up Coupon available @

Why we still litterEarly humans threw their trash on the ground. But there's a psychology behind why we continue to—and how to make us stop. 

Other essay postings: