The Litter Problem - Does Anyone Really Care?
November 6, 2000
The October bank holiday weekend is not long gone and the streets are for the moment clean again until the next time. Unfortunately the next time is always just around the corner and mostly comes every weekend. Several recent visitors to county Wicklow from the Netherlands considered Ireland and County Wicklow one of the most visually stunning Countries they had ever visited, but could not understand our mentality concerning the quantities of litter they encountered on our streets.
Litter, litter everywhere
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Admittedly the Dutch are very aware of their immediate surroundings and their environment, and are quick to point out other people's deficiencies in this department. But when you look at the Netherlands with a population of 16 million people in a land mass just over half that of Ireland, its not so surprising they take great care with what they've got and how they manage it. The honest truth of the matter is they simply leave us standing when it comes to issues like waste management and recycling, not to mention our attitude to casually throwing litter on our streets and roadways.
Why do we appear to casually litter at will and are apparently unconcerned with the public image this bad habit gives our country. The answer is very simple and falls under the "we don't care" attitude to everything and every place that's public and therefor available to be used and abused. Bank holiday weekends in particular seem to bring this behavior to the forefront. I'm sure indigenous readers can conjure up images of fish and chip paper wrapping, burger bags, and the infamous plastic bag, scattered all over a section of street in their town or village. When alcohol is introduced into the equation our littering capabilities would appear to have no bounds. Just think of any Saturday night, outside of any chipper or burger joint in your hometown.
In fairness it must be said not everyone overtly litters our streets, but the problem is a serious one. Other nations partake of a drink on the weekend and public holidays, and they too litter to some extent. But that's been the comparison ends. Images of ripped and tattered plastic bags entangled in lines of trees adjoining our roads and motorways can only be found in Ireland, and unfortunately parts of County Wicklow suffers badly from this visual nightmare.
Efforts are being made through national advertising and the introduction of stringent on the spot fines in an attempt to highlight people's awareness of the seriousness of the problem. A massive educational program is also underway at primary level in our schools. Plastic bags are been made more expensive in an effort to curtail their use and limit their associated litter problem. But unlike the kids in school, the general public and for that matter various sections of industry must also get with the program, and learn to dispose of their rubbish in a responsible manner befitting their position in society.
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