Littering.

I was in tears watching that programme Ragu. And I’m usually quite stoic when it comes to watching wildlife programmes.

Watched a programme on TV last night where an animal rescue tried to save a swan that had swallowed a fishing hook and a young fox had a plastic bottle stuck on its head.

The fox survived (just) the swan didn’t.

I litter pick down a lovely lane. It is used as a rat run by those wanting to avoid the A road that runs nearby. Consequently, litter is regularly thrown from car windows on to the road and grass verges. I am 76 with mobility issues but off I go with my purple sack and grabber to tidy up. This 'couldn't care less' attitude is on the increase. My dearest wish is to one day creep up behind a dog walker carefully hanging a filled dog poo bag on a branch!

I litter pick on my local beach most days as I walk my dog. I find it therapeutic. It always amazes me how much litter is washed up. I can pick up anything from crisp packets to soles off shoes. Sometimes I can collect a carrier bag full and others not so much but there is always small bits of plastic.

We live on a busy street near a park and several schools. People walking past throw their litter over the fence into the garden, not to mention doggie poo bags. When they throw glass bottles, of course they smash, with glass everyone...a hazard to ourselves and animals.
Something else people do is park their cars and empty the ash tray into the street, then drive off, leaving a little pile of fag ends.

Most people here would give anyone dropping litter an earful. Broadly, people just don’t. I can’t remember any adverts against littering for a long time they are just not necessary. Pride in your country?

Yes, the Keep Britain Clean campaign was an important initiative to keep the environment clean and looked after. Over time, many aspects of this campaign have lost their relevance and pollution problems have become more visible. We really need stronger efforts to protect the environment and combat litter.

Omg littering really makes my blood boil !!! I’m part of a local litter picking group and the amount of litter collected is disgusting. One of our picking areas is a junction on the m25 and the roads off it. It’s all drink cans, bottles and coffee cups . Plus sandwich and crisp packets . I’ve seen lorry and van drivers chuck stuff out of their windows . I’ve also found bottles full of urine 🤮. Although how on earth can you pee in a bottle whilst driving 🤷‍♀️.
I really don’t understand how difficult it is to find a bin or take it home . This was how I was brought up and my kids too.
And as for flytipping 🤬 I walked my dog in local woods today and it was glorious with all the bluebells , not so glorious were a few dumped mattresses and side tables 😔.

I absolutely detest litterers!! No excuse for it ever ever ever! Makes my blood boil!

A relative of mine lived in a block of flats.At the ground floor entrance was a litter bin on which the caretaker had pinned a notice on which he had written, '' In the event of nuclear attack please get into this bin as nothing hits it''.

I was in my front garden very early one morning having just put the bin out when a woman with a child in a pushchair and a dog put a bag of shog dit in the bin. I fished it out, ran after her, and tried to hand it back to her. She called me something unrepeatable, and took off down the road as fast as she could with a dog and a pushchair. I regularly have to pick up beer cans, condoms, burger boxes, empty vapes etc. that people just chuck over the fence. Sadly this is nothing new, I remember my mother in law (born during WW1) chucking stuff out a car window and when I suggested this was wrong she told me that it was the council's job to clear up litter and this is what street cleaners were for. I can also remember a time when nobody was expected to pick up after their dog in public places which included the sandpit in the children's playground.

We've got friends from Australia coming to stay this summer.One of them is originally from Britain but has lived over there 40 years.Last time we saw him a few years ago he commented on how much litter there was. I dread to think what they will think now as they travel around visiting various people. I'm ashamed at how little some people value our otherwise beautiful country.

I returned home from the park on Friday with littlest GS only to find a litre water bottle filled with urine thrown over my front wall 😡😡😡

I do live on the main road through our commuter belt village, (not big enough to be a town, but slightly to big to be a traditional village anymore)

Perhaps a campaign ad showing people wading through a flood of litter a metre high to show what would happen if we all threw our litter about and nobody came to clean it up.

FindingNemo15. Yes, we saw the Tonight programme was unbelievable! Just can’t understand the mentality of flytippers, it is such a massive problem. We litter pick on the beach as we walk the dogs and also have groups who litter pick in the local villages, very sad as we shouldn’t have to. Other countries don’t have this problem, the question has to be asked. Why?

We have teams of litter pickers in our village and the amount of rubbish they collect is appalling. Since moving to the countryside a few years ago I have been very saddened to see the amount of litter dumped in our otherwise beautiful hedgerows. I am currently in Perth, Western Australia and I have to say, litter is virtually non existent, everywhere is spotless, neat and tidy, even the beaches, you never see as much as a cigarette end!

We live in a rural area, with no shops within three to four miles, so almost all of the litter on our grass verges and in the hedgerows must be being thrown from passing cars. Why people feel the need to do that, I will never understand. It wouldn't exactly be hard for them to keep it in their car until they get home, then pop it in their bin.

On top of that, it's quite scary just how many empty wine, spirits and beer bottles appear overnight - there must be a lot of very drunken drivers on our roads.

Then there is the refuse that 'escapes' when our bins are being emptied. The collectors are presumably on a tight schedule, so don't bother picking up anything that gets dropped.
At least things have at improved a bit since our paper and plastic recycling boxes were replaced with proper wheelie bins, because the boxes used to get blown around by the wind, their lids would come off and the paper would go everywhere!

Why is it that when you stop at traffic lights on a roundabout the verge is covered in litter which is completely trapped into the gutters and verge.

I live on a rural road with a wide entrance to the drive . Seems several cars take this as an ideal stopping place to eat sandwiches drink pop etc and then leave their rubbish behind. Often find beer cans on the grass verge outside too. A few weeks ago I was wanting to driving out of the drive into the road and there was a car across the bottom of my drive blocking my exit with the female driver on her phone. I drove close enough for her to see me thinking she would move from the drive to the grass verge bit she didn't. I pipped my horn and still no movement, Did this 3/4 times and she still didn't move. I got out of my car and tapped on the side window of her car and she just glared at me, stuck up a finger and carried on with her phone call. I got back in my car and sat with my hand on the horn hoping this would mean she couldn't hear on her phone and she then drove off. I was actually quite shaken at such blatant rudeness/bad manners and just didn't know what else I could have done.

As I said, unlike Singapore, we have no one around to hand out fines, so people get away with it.

Has anyone been to Singapore? They have heavy fines for dropping litter and some offenders also have to collect litter for a set amount of hours. Consequently there is no litter. It's not rocket science. We are, as usual, too soft. It's probably against someone's human rights if we tell them off.

Greta

We are just too soft. We are also too eager to find excuses for those who misbehave. When I was teaching I wouldn't dismiss my class until they had checked that the floor was clean. Once a boy called out "don't you know we have cleaners?" In other words "somebody else will do it".

I've had that from pupils when made to pick up rubbish. I would tell them that the cleaners were there to hoover up tiny bits of debris such as pencil sharpenings - though they should be in the bin - not balls of paper or paper aeroplanes thrown around the room requiring them to bend down. But they often argued with me about it!

In the end I lost my job as a cover supervisor as I kept a class behind at lunch time to restore the room to a satisfactory state.When I was satisfied with their efforts and was letting them go, 2 students (among the worst offenders) barged past me to leave out of the order I'd decided on. I stupidly tried to stop them and ended up being falsely accused of assault! I was suspended and eventually resigned as I didn't have the support of my head teacher. He was the type who wanted to be 'every pupil's best friend' and he wanted me gone as I was 'too strict'. Unfortunately if parents don't teach their kids how to behave, it is difficult for teachers to make up for their failures!

My only consolation is that I went to a better school where I was happier, though I ended up working more hours for less money and had to claim benefits for the last few years until retirement. The school I left is now closed as its reputation became so bad it ceased to be viable! I also know some of what one of the culprits has done since, which has cost his parents dearly! I have zero sympathy!

This country is not run by a government who cares. We are over populated which makes it worse. The ordinary public are cash cows for greedy corporations. The level of rubbish reflects the ignorance and ennui in the population.

Have you pointed this out to the council?

I don't recall being taught not to drop litter - I just never have done, and neither have my children. Even as a smoker, I never even dropped a finished cigarette end - I carried a tiny tin and put it in there. Whilst still a smoker, I once stayed overnight in a non-smoking motorway hotel and stood outside to have a smoke. There were two enormous bins for litter with special add-ons for cigarette ends and yet the floor below them was covered in used fags. I just can't fathom it at all. And no, I don't have the tidiest house in the world, but I don't have anything on the floor that doesn't belong there.