Showing posts with label waste disposal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label waste disposal. Show all posts
Thursday, June 24, 2010
January 2010 New Years Salute and Greetings from Vermont
Raise your hands if you like Litter. No hands, that was easy! Let us take a pledge to refuse to look down on litter unless we are willing to help pick it up. South Burlington: Green and Clean, and Litter Free in 2010!
Litter picking is an All Season Sport - Litter Survey @ sensitive areas in South Burlington, Vermont
How do you sustain and maintain Green Mountains? It takes lots of rain and sunshine. Our rain quota filled in July (and then some). Now we need some Sun! How do we keep South Burlington Clean as well as Green? Litter prevention and litter round up is the Vermont way. Volunteers picked up tons of trash on Green Up Day filling their quota (and then some). Now we need prevention measures to keep our neighborhoods, city streets, and streams Green and Clean. Keeping a small trash bag in the car is one way to reduce the likelihood of trash thrown out the window.
As much as we want August, September, October, and beyond to be sunny, we know, we need rain periodically to keep our beautiful scenery green. So it is with maintaining and sustaining a clean urban environment-pleasant to view, safe for nature’s outdoor creatures and us. Eleven ecologically sensitive stream areas cleaned up on Green Up Day now, only two months later show the need for litter prevention diligence and a pick up a piece every day attitude.
These eleven ecologically sensitive sites today average 14 pieces of litter per a 50 linear foot walk with some areas as high as 24 pieces of trash per 50 linear feet; much improved over the pre-Green Up Day defamation but worse than the pristine condition immediately following the volunteers cleanup effort in May. What has since accumulated may suggest to us where to focus our prevention work.
Heavy trash (tires, barrels, shopping carts, 55-gallon drums) were evident in May but not so now. The break out of trash at these sites in July was as follows: Takeout food or drink wrappers/containers (40%), non redeemable bottles or cans-predominately water bottles (16%), plastic-non food packaging ( 15%), cardboard or paper-non food packaging (10%), redeemable bottles or cans (9%), cigarette packaging (3%), automobile parts (2%), clothing/cloth (1%), miscellaneous (5%).
Good news: all that rain in July has assured tall green growth in these areas hiding for now much of the litter. The absence of heavy trash is also good news. On the not so good side at least one site (Market Street) was laden with five large partially torn garbage bags of household trash. In addition, another location, (Bartlett Bay road) had litter directly in a stream. Also remember where the litter may be hidden now, it may be in view later in the year, either due to seasonal vegetation die off or lawn mower hits (multiplying the littered effect) or due to the wind transporting the litter to our sidewalks, streets and yards.
Like the sun finding its way through the clouds, each of us can be lookouts for litter hot spots. Then individually or as community groups, we can pick up a piece every day, or at least not wait until next May to maintain and sustain our Green and Clean urban environment. Is your neighborhood litter free?
As much as we want August, September, October, and beyond to be sunny, we know, we need rain periodically to keep our beautiful scenery green. So it is with maintaining and sustaining a clean urban environment-pleasant to view, safe for nature’s outdoor creatures and us. Eleven ecologically sensitive stream areas cleaned up on Green Up Day now, only two months later show the need for litter prevention diligence and a pick up a piece every day attitude.
These eleven ecologically sensitive sites today average 14 pieces of litter per a 50 linear foot walk with some areas as high as 24 pieces of trash per 50 linear feet; much improved over the pre-Green Up Day defamation but worse than the pristine condition immediately following the volunteers cleanup effort in May. What has since accumulated may suggest to us where to focus our prevention work.
Heavy trash (tires, barrels, shopping carts, 55-gallon drums) were evident in May but not so now. The break out of trash at these sites in July was as follows: Takeout food or drink wrappers/containers (40%), non redeemable bottles or cans-predominately water bottles (16%), plastic-non food packaging ( 15%), cardboard or paper-non food packaging (10%), redeemable bottles or cans (9%), cigarette packaging (3%), automobile parts (2%), clothing/cloth (1%), miscellaneous (5%).
Good news: all that rain in July has assured tall green growth in these areas hiding for now much of the litter. The absence of heavy trash is also good news. On the not so good side at least one site (Market Street) was laden with five large partially torn garbage bags of household trash. In addition, another location, (Bartlett Bay road) had litter directly in a stream. Also remember where the litter may be hidden now, it may be in view later in the year, either due to seasonal vegetation die off or lawn mower hits (multiplying the littered effect) or due to the wind transporting the litter to our sidewalks, streets and yards.
Like the sun finding its way through the clouds, each of us can be lookouts for litter hot spots. Then individually or as community groups, we can pick up a piece every day, or at least not wait until next May to maintain and sustain our Green and Clean urban environment. Is your neighborhood litter free?
Litter picking is an All Season Sport - Misconceptions about cigarette butts. Cig butts top Vermont's litter list.
Cigarette butts impose daunting math problem. As six year old asks "Why do People Litter?"
Six-year-old Francine Able of South Burlington recalled when her dad challenged her to count the fireflies in the back yard one early summer night. At first, it was easy- for just one or two burning lights flew about. However, as others joined in the fray, hundreds if not thousands of the small insects infiltrated the Spartan sky. The following year when spring and Green Up day arrived, Mr. Able challenged Francine to count all the pieces of litter they would find and dispose. Francine was sure success would be hers this time. However, to Francine's surprise litter splattered the area they had cleaned up last Green Up day, imposing another daunting math problem.
Stalling, Francine asked her dad, “why do people litter?” to which he responded:
• Lack of knowledge of the environmental effects of littering.
• Litter has already accumulated. The more litter present the more people are inclined to litter.
• Lack of social pressure to do the right thing.
• Number, placement and appearance of disposal containers at or near the site are inadequate.
• People who litter often feel no sense of pride in the areas they are littering.
• They do not view the item as litter. That is often the case with cigarette butts.
Given the enormity of the pending count, Francine decided to try to improve her odds of success. “Cigarettes butts are small and inconsequential so I don't need to count them,” she suggested.
Photo by Rosanne Greco
To which Mr. Able responded, “Cigarettes may be small but they are more harmful to our environment than first meets the eye. Think of the volumes of cigarettes tossed on our streets many of which end up in our streams, rivers, and lakes. In addition, remember:
• Cigarette butts are not biodegradable (Most filters are made of plastic-like cellulose acetate.)
• The chemicals that leach out of the filters may harm aquatic life at the bottom of the food chain.
• Fish and other marine creatures as well as birds may ingest cigarettes mistaking them for food.”
As you can see here and especially at the outside entrances to public buildings, many people do not believe they are, littering when they throw their cigarette butts on the ground. We need to get the message out that cigarette butts are litter, in order to change the behavior that contaminates our urban landscape, harms wildlife, pollutes our waters, and creates a gargantuan mathematical challenge for you Francine.
Looking on the bright side Francine calculated that the day's Green Up haul of litter larger than a cigarette were down from last year. “Dad, now we need to get as strong a message out to folks about the harmful impacts of cigarette litter. If we do that do you think cigarette littering behavior will change and next year I won't need a calculator when we come back here next Green UP day?”
Mr. Able replied, “Francine, you can count on that!”
References: Bulleted litter facts from Prince Edward Islands web site:
http://www.gov.pe.ca/enveng/litter/index.php3?number=61866&lang=E
*Fictional story and characters. No intention to represent any real individual.
June 2009
March 2012 update
You Tube-"Butt Really" song by Michael Franti: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP_rg4xShac
Toxicity of Cigarette butts: http://cmsdata.iucn.org/downloads/novotny_20legacy_20slides_1_.pdf
More Cig. Butts Facts: http://www.legacyforhealth.org/PDF/Environmental_Toolkit.pdf
Top 10 trash items in our oceans: http://www.oceanconservancy.org/our-work/marine-debris/2012-data-release.html
Six-year-old Francine Able of South Burlington recalled when her dad challenged her to count the fireflies in the back yard one early summer night. At first, it was easy- for just one or two burning lights flew about. However, as others joined in the fray, hundreds if not thousands of the small insects infiltrated the Spartan sky. The following year when spring and Green Up day arrived, Mr. Able challenged Francine to count all the pieces of litter they would find and dispose. Francine was sure success would be hers this time. However, to Francine's surprise litter splattered the area they had cleaned up last Green Up day, imposing another daunting math problem.
Stalling, Francine asked her dad, “why do people litter?” to which he responded:
• Lack of knowledge of the environmental effects of littering.
• Litter has already accumulated. The more litter present the more people are inclined to litter.
• Lack of social pressure to do the right thing.
• Number, placement and appearance of disposal containers at or near the site are inadequate.
• People who litter often feel no sense of pride in the areas they are littering.
• They do not view the item as litter. That is often the case with cigarette butts.
Given the enormity of the pending count, Francine decided to try to improve her odds of success. “Cigarettes butts are small and inconsequential so I don't need to count them,” she suggested.
Photo by Rosanne Greco
To which Mr. Able responded, “Cigarettes may be small but they are more harmful to our environment than first meets the eye. Think of the volumes of cigarettes tossed on our streets many of which end up in our streams, rivers, and lakes. In addition, remember:
• Cigarette butts are not biodegradable (Most filters are made of plastic-like cellulose acetate.)
• The chemicals that leach out of the filters may harm aquatic life at the bottom of the food chain.
• Fish and other marine creatures as well as birds may ingest cigarettes mistaking them for food.”
As you can see here and especially at the outside entrances to public buildings, many people do not believe they are, littering when they throw their cigarette butts on the ground. We need to get the message out that cigarette butts are litter, in order to change the behavior that contaminates our urban landscape, harms wildlife, pollutes our waters, and creates a gargantuan mathematical challenge for you Francine.
Looking on the bright side Francine calculated that the day's Green Up haul of litter larger than a cigarette were down from last year. “Dad, now we need to get as strong a message out to folks about the harmful impacts of cigarette litter. If we do that do you think cigarette littering behavior will change and next year I won't need a calculator when we come back here next Green UP day?”
Mr. Able replied, “Francine, you can count on that!”
References: Bulleted litter facts from Prince Edward Islands web site:
http://www.gov.pe.ca/enveng/litter/index.php3?number=61866&lang=E
*Fictional story and characters. No intention to represent any real individual.
June 2009
March 2012 update
You Tube-"Butt Really" song by Michael Franti: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP_rg4xShac
Toxicity of Cigarette butts: http://cmsdata.iucn.org/downloads/novotny_20legacy_20slides_1_.pdf
More Cig. Butts Facts: http://www.legacyforhealth.org/PDF/Environmental_Toolkit.pdf
Top 10 trash items in our oceans: http://www.oceanconservancy.org/our-work/marine-debris/2012-data-release.html
Litter picking is an All Season Sport - New Years Litter Clean Up resolutions. South Burlington, Vermont
As a Vermont, USA, Earth resident concerned with our interaction with nature in an urban environment I write a monthly column titled "Green & Clean" or "Litter with stories to tell".
Vermont winter’s give us time to reflect and plan. It is so much easier to dream of all the things we are going to accomplish this year when actually doing the things is months away. Yet vision takes both dreams and action. Now is a great time to dream about a Green and Clean Litter Free City of South Burlington and to plan the actions that will fulfill that dream. So grab your walking stick, a package of flower seeds and some flower bulbs, maybe a bare root tree or two, and of course don’t forget to bring along a couple of small grocery bags to pick up any trash seen on the way. Come along to meander in my New Year’s Green and Clean resolutions.
My Green and Clean Litter Free New Year’s resolutions:
1. Rally for a November Fall Litter harvest day to mirror Green Up Day in May.
2. Write a litter nursery rhyme to help grow the Green Up spirit early.
3. Catalog all species of litter (field guide) before any of them become extinct.
4. Answer the question “Why do people litter?)
5. Combine Easter egg hunts with litter treasure hunts. Maybe hide a golden apple somewhere in the city litter.
6. Write an essay on litter-the man made invasive species.
7. Write an essay on how litter helped bring down ancient Rome.
8. Organize a litter anonymous chapter.
9. Organize a hooked on litter (removal) chapter.
10. Endorse ‘coffee for less’ on proprietary refillable cups. Think discounts at all participating coffee take out businesses in South Burlington.
11. Seek sponsorships for Saturday litter round ups. (Litter rodeos)
12. Plant shrubs and trees in our urban landscape.
13. Provide simple tree care tips for public and business use.
14. Design litter meters. Think red, amber, and green alerts.
15. Offer a litter clean up contest throughout the year recognizing: A. Most improved neighborhood or street. B. 10, 25 and 50-bag litter pick up pin awards.
16. Recognize and promote volunteers individuals, organizations, and businesses who find creative ways to green up and clean up our city year round.
17. Seek historical accounts from residents on topics like “Litter free America when I was a kid”.
18. Drive a petition to require one flower bulb planting for every ‘vote for me’ political sign. Imagine how beautiful the roads would be in the spring.
19. Begin a list of Green and Clean job (volunteer) opportunities.
20. Network with others also interested in developing a model of fun, socially oriented activities. The goal of which is maintaining a Green and Clean urban environment.
Vermont winter’s give us time to reflect and plan. It is so much easier to dream of all the things we are going to accomplish this year when actually doing the things is months away. Yet vision takes both dreams and action. Now is a great time to dream about a Green and Clean Litter Free City of South Burlington and to plan the actions that will fulfill that dream. So grab your walking stick, a package of flower seeds and some flower bulbs, maybe a bare root tree or two, and of course don’t forget to bring along a couple of small grocery bags to pick up any trash seen on the way. Come along to meander in my New Year’s Green and Clean resolutions.
My Green and Clean Litter Free New Year’s resolutions:
1. Rally for a November Fall Litter harvest day to mirror Green Up Day in May.
2. Write a litter nursery rhyme to help grow the Green Up spirit early.
3. Catalog all species of litter (field guide) before any of them become extinct.
4. Answer the question “Why do people litter?)
5. Combine Easter egg hunts with litter treasure hunts. Maybe hide a golden apple somewhere in the city litter.
6. Write an essay on litter-the man made invasive species.
7. Write an essay on how litter helped bring down ancient Rome.
8. Organize a litter anonymous chapter.
9. Organize a hooked on litter (removal) chapter.
10. Endorse ‘coffee for less’ on proprietary refillable cups. Think discounts at all participating coffee take out businesses in South Burlington.
11. Seek sponsorships for Saturday litter round ups. (Litter rodeos)
12. Plant shrubs and trees in our urban landscape.
13. Provide simple tree care tips for public and business use.
14. Design litter meters. Think red, amber, and green alerts.
15. Offer a litter clean up contest throughout the year recognizing: A. Most improved neighborhood or street. B. 10, 25 and 50-bag litter pick up pin awards.
16. Recognize and promote volunteers individuals, organizations, and businesses who find creative ways to green up and clean up our city year round.
17. Seek historical accounts from residents on topics like “Litter free America when I was a kid”.
18. Drive a petition to require one flower bulb planting for every ‘vote for me’ political sign. Imagine how beautiful the roads would be in the spring.
19. Begin a list of Green and Clean job (volunteer) opportunities.
20. Network with others also interested in developing a model of fun, socially oriented activities. The goal of which is maintaining a Green and Clean urban environment.
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