Quick and Dirty Fact Sheet on Litter

What exactly is litter? It simply is trash put in the wrong place. Trash can belong any number of places - in the garbage can, in the recycling bin, in a reuse facility, at the sanitary landfill or the waste-to-energy plant. Where it does not belong is on the ground, in the rivers or oceans or blowing in the air.

Litter originates from seven major sources. Four are stationary sources where people live and work - household trash collection areas, business trash collection areas, business and industrial loading docks and construction and demolition sites. Three are moving sources - uncovered trucks, motorists and pedestrians. Although there are many reasons given for littering, two of the most common are not having a disposal container available and being too lazy to walk to the recycling ot trash container.

Although most people will agree litter is ugly, most do not know it has economic, legal and environmental repercussions as well.

Litter is ugly. No one likes to live where there is litter. Neighborhoods with a litter problem usually have higher crime, lower property values and less pride in their neighborhood. Litter begets litter. A place that is littered tends to encourage more litter i.e. a dropped off washing machine soon encourages other debris and a dump site is formed. So, the quicker dropped litter is picked up, the less chance it has of accumulating.

Litter is also expensive. Every year, the Virginia Department of Transportation spends about $7 million cleaning up litter. Houses for sale in littered neighborhoods usually don’t get the best prices and owners lose money. Fires started by dropped or dumped litter cause millions of dollars of damage every year.

Litter is illegal. Most people are unaware of littering fines. In Virginia, if you are caught littering from a vehicle, you can be fined up to $1, 000 and/or be sentenced to a year in prison. Most localities also have fines for businesses or pedestrians caught littering. Many people are unaware thaat the person opening a package of gum and dropping the wrapper on the sidewalk, is doing an illegal act and if caught, could face charges. Littering is against the law.

Litter hurts people. Every year in Virginia, there are about 2,500 vehicle accidents caused by litter. People in these accidents are injured and sometimes even killed in their attempts to avoid litter in the roadways. Young children fall on litter in playgrounds, get cut and need medical attention.

Litter also harms plants and degrades natural areas. When garbage is dumped, it can kill or stunt plant growth. Few people think about the harm to natural areas from litter.

Litter kills or injures animals. Many small animals crawl into bottles or jars and get stuck and slowly starve to death. Animals get caught in plastic six pack rings, plastic bags, fishing line and a multitude of throwaways. Birds that are stuck, can’t fly away from danger. Sometimes animals caught in six pack rings are strangled as they grow too big for the opening. Animals get cut, infected and die. Every year, millions of birds, fish and animals die from litter.

Litter is a problem that can be controlled. Education is an important tool. People who are aware of the dangers of litter often make more of an effort to always put their trash the correct place. They also spread the word to others they see littering and teach them to dispose of garbage the right way. Community clean ups encourage people to take pride in their community and keep it clean. Quick removal of litter keeps it from growing into an unmanageable dump site. People can make a difference. Litter can be conquered.

Quick Tips for Fighting Litter

1. Don’t litter.

2. Learn about litter so you can teach others. Prevention is a wise choice.

3. If you see a friend litter, tell they why they shouldn’t litter.

4. If you see litter, pick it up. (Unless it is broken glass which should be swept up.)

5. Adopt-A-Highway near you.

To teach about an issue, you need to know the basic facts about it. Quick and Dirty Fact Sheets give teachers a quick background on waste management issues. They are written to give a basic understanding of the issue and do not include all information available on the topic. For in depth study of one of these issues, we suggest you visit DEQ's Office of Litter Prevention and Recycling or contact your local litter prevention and recycling coordinator.