To get so cross at litter

Over 30 years ago, my student son had a stint on the dustbin round. Most days he would come home, very pleased with some treasure he had found amonst the discarded items. This he would spent the evening ' renovating' sometimes not even tightenng a screw. Some he sold on, some he kept. I have just discarded his last( working) find... a record player/ radio etc stack
I understand it is now illegal for stuff to be rescued from rubbish bins in such a way

Tizliz, I actually don’t agree with people being fined for throwing cigarette ends on the road. I hate litter as much as anyone, but judging by the number of burnt out litter bins round here, the ground is the best place for burning objects!

I live in the country and you can guarantee that after a bank Holiday there'll be a mattress or a fridge or some such rubbish dumped on a grass verge somewhere near us.

I can understand why some people dump large items. Our council charge 25 pounds to remove them, and not everyone has it to spare.
I'm sure a more workable solution could be found.

My son had an early morning stint on the bins when he was a student, widgeon, collecting trade waste. Like yours, he brought all sorts home. I remember a whole tray of bonsai trees in pots, all healthy, new shirts still in the cellophane, and - his personal favourite - a dozen bottles of beer, unopened and in date.

I hate litter being thrown it is even worse when it is on the floor right next to a bin. We were brought up to bring our litter home if there was no bin. I blame the parents I have seen many children out with their parents and they throw sweet wrappers etc on the floor and the parents say nothing. We would of had a clip up the ear not that we dared do it.

Nonnie wrote: "Luckily we don't see much of it round here but I hope that one day I will have the courage, when I see someone drop litter, to pick it up and give it to them and say "I think you dropped this". Wonder if I will have that courage?"

My mother did this to a car driver and the driver said "We don't want it" Mother replied "We don't want it either."

South Yorkshire litter pickers were on the TV recently. Appalling the amount of rubbish that must have been thrown from card as it was on a busy road.

There are several charity skips where I live and rubbish piles up at the sides of them. The charities won't take it as it's not in the skip so presumably the council takes it away. This is in fact fly tipping.

We used to live opposite a Secondary School, the times we saw pupils throw cans towards the bin, if it fell on the grass there it stayed, my DH or myself would often go over & put offending items in the bin.

As we lived on a corner the pupils used to congregate in the mornings & would stuff crisp packets etc behind the BT box. We complained frequently to the School, they did at least lecture the pupils. The entrance along our road was only meant for the cyclists.

We were so fed up at the beginning of one school year, about 20 pupils gathered on the corner, very loud & our bedroom overlooked them, I rang the School, next morning the Headmistress came out, read them the Riot Act, end of problem.

As a child, living in the country I was taught to put rubbish back into my pocket to dispose of in a bin or at home.

I only ever took someone to task once for dropping a cigarette packet in the bus station. I pointed out to him, politely, that there was a bin nearby and would it not be better if he used it. He was abusive almost to the point of aggression and I was terrified. I haven’t done it since, I’m afraid.

this is one thing I'm dreading when we move back. Though it's becoming more common here too now (rural France.)
Eldest daughter has a few times done similar to the poster on the previous page who put the banana skin back in the offender's car, she's quite intimidating in spite of her small size.
OTOH she's a teacher, and once rebuked a teenager for dropping rubbish. The teenager replied, " my Mum's a cleaner here - do you want to do her out of a job?"
I'm not sure what happened next.

Miss Adventure, are you saying that it's OK for people to drive out to the country and dump their rubbish. Not only is it an eyesore, it could also be a health hazard and someone else has to pay for it to be cleaned up.

Some one did that outside our house once. We live in a long cul de sac. She soon had it back.

gerry86 I'm certainly not saying its ok. I'm saying I can understand why. I despise rubbish and litter anywhere other than in the bin.

I've just remembered something I read in our local paper some time ago.
In one very rural village people complained that a large amount of rubbish had been dumped at the side of the road. The Maire of the village had the rubbish checked , found an address among it, and had the whole lot picked up and dumped in front of the offender's house.
I wonder how that would go down in the UK?

It's go down well with me for one, Fennel!

We certainly had less fly-tipping here when the Council used to collect bulky items for free, but I suppose they'd say they have to charge now due to funding cuts. Whether it's actually cost-effective when they've to keep removing rubbish that's been dumped and try to find out who's dumped it, I don't know. At the moment they only charge £15 per collection, but it has been as high as £30, and I'm sure they were once asking £15 per item. Fridges and freezers £24.92, which seems an odd amount!

It'd, not It's!

The people in the big houses opposite the (council) flats where I live often sneak over and dump bulky rubbish near our bins. Then I phone the council, and they come and clear it for nothing when they realise I won't be paying. It really gets my goat!

Good points there Jaycee

I risk an argument and will take people to task who drop litter. I will also offer poo bags to people who do not pick up their dogs faeces. I once asked a lady to pick up her dogs poo to be told it didn't really matter as dog was only small. I said that I would follow her and allow my children to poo on her garden. She was horrified and said it was disgusting, to which I replied so is your dogs poo please remove it. She picked it up muttering about mad interfering people My DD keeps telling me someone will thump me one day but I don't care. Worst thing is idiots who throw lit cigarettes out of car windows, had one land in child's pushchair and my dad had one come in through his open car window and burn his leg. He nearly crashed trying to get to it

It is totally abhorrent to me to see litter and fly tipping spoiling our countryside. There is absolutely no excuse! If there are no bins, then take your rubbish home with you. When the Police fail to take burglary seriously then there is no hope that they will prosecute/fine people who take no pride in their country. Education begins at home and should continue in schools.

My 47yr old daughter complains because her jacket pockets are often full of rubbish. When my 3 were children I used to insist when we were out, that they put their sweetie wrappers in their pockets if there were no bins around and dispose of it when they got home. Apparently she has never lost the habit. My fault.

Lots of kids from the 2 local high schools walk past our house after buying crisps, sweets and drinks etc at the local shops. I am fed up of picking up their empty packets and bottles etc from our garden and from the street outside. Sometimes they stand cans or bottles on our gatepost or on the street namepost outside our house. Do they think that is being tidy? I still have to dispose of them. The schools aren't interested. When I tackled some of the kids a while ago one of them jumped over my wall and trampled some of my plants. I think the parents don't teach them to take their litter home. My grandson (7) knows not to drop litter. He is very careful to put everything in the bin. Tbh his favourite game when he was little was tidying. Very odd.