Discussion
It's terrible round here, we are on a road with takeaways and small shops at one end, and a bus stop at the other - and a junction that leads to the local scrote estate - so it's not surprising there is litter.
What really annoys me though is that there are actually bins on our road, one at a junction and another at the bus stop at the other end, and the council guy empties them every few days and picks up most of the litter, but it's a losing battle! For some reason people cannot hang on to the litter until they get to the bins provided for them.
What really annoys me though is that there are actually bins on our road, one at a junction and another at the bus stop at the other end, and the council guy empties them every few days and picks up most of the litter, but it's a losing battle! For some reason people cannot hang on to the litter until they get to the bins provided for them.
It's always depressing after they mow roadside verges to see how much litter there is. Like other posters, I'm at a loss to understand why anyone thinks it's acceptable to just drop something wherever, rather than wait until they get to a bin.
Then, when miscreants are fined, there seems to be a substantial number of people who wail that £450 is completely disproportionate for dropping a cigarette end.
I like the idea posted by some others - put litterers on gangs picking the stuff up.
Then, when miscreants are fined, there seems to be a substantial number of people who wail that £450 is completely disproportionate for dropping a cigarette end.
I like the idea posted by some others - put litterers on gangs picking the stuff up.
Grayedout said:
Respect or lack of it is the reason!
The population has lost all respect for the country and so feel no reason to maintain it.
People are all too self centred these days and so don't care if we throw some rubbish on the road as 'it's not my problem' ! They all think somebody else will deal with it!
This is exactly the problem we have.The population has lost all respect for the country and so feel no reason to maintain it.
People are all too self centred these days and so don't care if we throw some rubbish on the road as 'it's not my problem' ! They all think somebody else will deal with it!
Absolutely f
king hate it. Grayedout said:
They all think somebody else will deal with it!
This is the start of my problem with picking it up. Don't get me wrong, I do pick up litter on the pavement outside the house and stick it in the bin, but I imagine there's someone, somewhere, chuckling to themselves, knowing that I'm cleaning up after them. I think fining people a hefty amount (or some litter-picking service) is a good thing in general, as long as there is some leeway for genuine mistakes. I've seen newspaper stories where people have taken their wallet out, dropped a bit of paper without realising, and been pounced on by some jobsworth who flatly refuses to cancel the fine, and that's a good way to alienate people. Obviously no idea which side of those stories is being played up, if any, but we all know there are various warden-types that love to exercise their authority.
ETA - And as for fly-tipping, some* of that isn't helped by local authority attitudes. I have some old tyres to dispose of, which I stupidly have had since it was OK to just throw them in the bin or take them to the tip, but I never got around to it. So I contact the local council to ask whether I can take them to the tip, or any of their tips (some councils have one or two that will take them, apparently) - the answer is "no, but there are companies who will take them, for a small fee". I then ask whether the council has any contact details of one they recommend or would normally pass people to in this situation - again, that's a "no". I've already spent more time than many people trying to find out the right thing to do, and would it really be so difficult for the council to have some companies that they can send people to? Maybe the council would get a bit of commission in return, to go towards their deficit.
(* obviously most of it is just the bone idle who can't be bothered and know someone else will clear up after them, of course)
Edited by droopsnoot on Friday 14th December 14:20
I think Bill Bryson summed it up quite well in 'the road to little dribbling'. Can't remember the exact quote but it was similar to the following; Americans will rarely walk more than 50 metres anywhere and will park as close to shops/restaurants as physically possible. I fear the British are going the same way, except, during their 50 metres, they will drop some litter and get a tattoo.
Walking around the urban areas closest to me (Southampton, Fareham, Portsmouth), by far the biggest elements of litter are cigarette butts and fast food wrappers. No idea how we stop the former, aside from eventually persuading people not to smoke, but perhaps a condition of trading for KFC and the like should be that they are required to send out litter patrols within a certain radius of their premises. I'm sure they can afford it, it would be good PR for them, and might reinforce the message that littering is unacceptable. Of course it would have no effect outside of town centres, but the problem is getting worse and councils don't have the budget to do anything currently.
Either that or let the Army do target practice on any litter dropper; live ammunition of course.
Either that or let the Army do target practice on any litter dropper; live ammunition of course.
Straws 10p each non-refundable.
Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
Dr Doofenshmirtz said:
Straws 10p each non-refundable.
Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
"Like".Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
On the upside, this thread reminded me to moan at West Berks via their website about the huge amount of roadside litter on the A340. I'm due a response within 10 days, so it'll be interesting to see if they do anything.
Dr Doofenshmirtz said:
Straws 10p each non-refundable.
Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
Nope, wont fix a thing. You'd just get people whinging about the extra cost. Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
There could be a case for a new type of undercover police force that deals with crap like this. Harsh on the spot fines, full powers of arrest if needed, include things like driving with a phone or driving like a tt. You could issue a fine every 30 minutes without trying hard if you were incognito. It would run at a massive profit.
t. You could issue a fine every 30 minutes without trying hard if you were incognito. It would run at a massive profit.captain_cynic said:
Dr Doofenshmirtz said:
Straws 10p each non-refundable.
Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
Nope, wont fix a thing. You'd just get people whinging about the extra cost. Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
I think it would solve everything litter related, and most people agree.
Dr Doofenshmirtz said:
captain_cynic said:
Dr Doofenshmirtz said:
Straws 10p each non-refundable.
Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
Nope, wont fix a thing. You'd just get people whinging about the extra cost. Those plastic lids they put on Costa et al cups- 10p each non-refundable.
All drinks bottles, cans etc - 10p tax refunded when returned to any store.
Fast food packaging +£1.50 packaging tax, refunded if handed back over the counter same day with receipt.
Cigarette packets, 50p packaging tax which is refunded when returned to store with receipt.
That would literally solve all, if not most of the litter issues I see when out walking.
I think it would solve everything litter related, and most people agree.
Most people here aren't litterers, that's why they think it'll work. Someone who is arrogant and self-centred enough to litter will blame someone else (the government, corporations, et al) for the cost and continue littering.
This is also why fines are not a functional deterrent, litterers just call it "stealth tax" and "government greed" rather than admit what they're doing is wrong. This is why I propose that litterers have to do some hours of community service picking up litter when caught.
RicksAlfas said:
But someone else would pick up the litter and take it back for the deposit!
Like glass bottles back in black and white times.
Hasn't quite worked that way in Australia where cans and bottles have been 5-10 cents (depending on which state you're in). Still plenty of bottles cans lying about as 10 cents isn't worth people's time to bend over. 10p isn't a huge amount when the min wage is £7 an hour.Like glass bottles back in black and white times.
Hey, but I'm a cynic
The only way to make this a self correcting issue is to make the litterers pick up rubbish as punishment.
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