Thursday, June 24, 2010

Litter picking is an All Season Sport - Litter Prevention measures. South Burlington, Vermont

Litter prevention starts with changing individuals and businesses behavior and attitude about litter. South Burlington residents and businesses demonstrated their distaste for litter on Green Up Day with a once a year clean up of sidewalks, roadsides, streams, storefronts and neighborhood lots. Sustaining the cleanup effort while focusing on litter prevention on a daily basis can make South Burlington a city representative of America the beautiful.

How businesses and the City government, and non profits can help.

• Give out cigarette receptacles and trash bags routinely.

◦ Cigarette companies may be a supply source for small cigarette receptacles.

• Establish and maintain trash receptacles in transition and high traffic areas.

◦ Trashcans are available with grates to prevent large volumes of illegal trash

dumping. The city of Winooski has placed such receptacles.

◦ Opportunity for a joint City/trash hauling business cooperative endeavor.

• Add to job expectations that employees will pick up trash on and around the place

of business. (Some like a Vermont products business and a computer business in

the heart of South Burlington have already adopted this tactic.)

• Sponsor summer jobs for youth litter patrols.

• Fast food restaurants, convenience stores, and other businesses can help educate

customers about litter prevention.

• Trucks need to have their loads covered while on roads and highways.

• Dumpster covers should be kept closed and all materials placed inside should be

in tied bags.



How individuals can help.

• Set an example by using trash receptacles.

• Keep and use a litterbag and (if you smoke) an ashtray in your car.

• Carry a litterbag with you when you walk or bicycle for your own trash as well as

to pick up trash along your excursion.

• Insure your home exterior trash cans and recycling containers are covered.

◦ If you are, using blue bins consider using a board as a cover.

• Adopt a neighborhood block or other targeted area to maintain as litter

free throughout the year.

• Pick up after pets and dispose of the waste appropriately.

• Compliment businesses that maintain a litter free establishment.

• Provide comments to businesses whose property is scarred by litter.

Please feel free to cut out the template below and leave it with any littered business to address the importance of prompt and regular remedial Green Up action.

To my community business owner, manager, and employees,

I encourage you walk around your establishment grounds, parking lot, as well as the adjoining sidewalk and public green space on a daily basis, whereupon maintaining a litter free welcoming mat into your business. It seems an oversight to spend dollars on advertising and building face-lifts only to neglect simple maintenance like grounds (litter) clean up. Thank You for your expected renewed - regular attention to business and community beautification.


“Let us all develop an attitude that it is not acceptable to walk past litter.”

“We as a community can become intolerant of littering behavior.” Author unknown.

No comments:

Post a Comment

COMMENTS WELCOMED