Stop the Drop
One of our most high-profile campaigns right now is Stop the Drop.
The launch in April 2008 was one of the first acts of our President, travel writer Bill Bryson, and here is part of his message to CPRE supporters:
"We launched this campaign because we believe that people care very much about their community, streets and countryside and don't want to see it disappearing under an ever increasing pile of litter.
"Talking to officials and landowners, going out with litter and fly-tipping crews, poring over parliamentary reports and drawing endlessly on the brains of CPRE staff we wanted to see if there aren't practical steps we can take to make things better. The result is a big, ambitious campaign called Stop the Drop, to try to get behaviour changed and laws enforced.
"Let me remind you of an extremely urgent fact: nowhere in the world is there a landscape more lovely to behold, more comfortable to be in, more artfully worked, more visited and walked across and gazed upon than the countryside of England. It is a glorious achievement and much too lovely to trash.
"We have moved past the age of Keep Britain Tidy. It is time to Get Britain Tidy. Please help us by taking some practical steps outlined below, your support can really help us make a difference.
1. Report a litter or fly-tipping problem to your local council
We've made it easy to find and email your local council about litter and fly-tipping. Just click below to pull up a form, fill in your details, then personalise our pre-written letter. Local authorities have a legal duty to clear up litter and your voice counts.
Report a problem and email your local authority.
2. Email your MP and ask them to sign the parliamentary motion supporting our campaign. Over 100 MPs have signed it but we want many more to take part and help our campaign. Identify and email your MP here.
3. Join an online community of concerned citizens at LitterAction.
4. Sign up to regular email bulletins and news from me. Or just read them here!
"The landscape of Britain is too lovely to trash. Many of us believe a tidy countryside should be a right, not a surpise. It's worth it, please help us if you can.
"Thank you very much for all your support."
Bill Bryson
CPRE President
CPRE's national Stop the Drop website offers lots of ideas and resources for you to use locally.
The campaign calls for a national, long term education campaign, a bottle deposit scheme and a change to the law on roadside litter. To date the campaign has inspired the formation of 286 litter picking groups across England, who have collectively cleared 35,068 bags of litter to date.
Updated by Fiona Cowan
3 March 2010