Latest from our anti-litter President
CPRE's president, travel writer Bill Bryson, is a keen anti-litter campaigner. You'd be surprised at some of the things he gets up to in the course of spearheading our STOP THE DROP campaign...
You may be unsurprised to learn there are many things I find galling, loathsome or downright infuriating. My odium blazes most when I see discarded litter tossed onto greensward, or garish bottles and cans incongruously sticking out of roadside hedgerows. Not only does litter decrease our enjoyment of the countryside and urban spaces but it is a chronic waste of precious resources.
This week is Recycle Week, which very sensibly suggests ‘Let's waste less'. We could waste a lot less glass, plastic and aluminium if there was a UK-wide bottle deposit scheme - a system that is proven internationally to reduce litter and increase recycling. The previous Government said it would be too expensive to have a scheme but didn't commission the research to determine what those costs would be. As for the industry players, they consistently bleat about the supposed prohibitive cost, again without having any hard figures.
To move this stagnant debate on, Stop the Drop commissioned and paid for the required research - a situation that truly rankles. CPRE has had to do what the government and industry should have done and get the facts on how a scheme that works perfectly well in other countries could work here. We will be publishing the research later in the year and I urge you to join us when the time is right to let the government know it must display common sense on this issue.
One company that has started to demonstrate good sense on litter is Carlsberg UK. I joined its Senior Management Team at a litterpick in Northampton a few weeks ago, along with the litter activists from CPRE Northamptonshire and was pleased to see the company is taking its environmental responsibilities seriously. Our 30-strong group litterpicked a large area around the brewery, inevitably finding many discarded cans and bottles. Isaac Sheps, Carlsberg UK Chief Executive, and I even found littered Carlsberg cans by the brewery's perimeter fence ...
Another group who I would like to thank are the students of the University of East Anglia, who braved the lovely summer weather - you're right, it was blowing a gale - to clean up the beach between Waxham and Horsey, one of Norfolk's most beautiful stretches of coastline. The area is famous for its seal colonies and birdlife but this fabulous fauna is forced to co-exist with a sickening amount of litter.
Working with volunteers from CPRE Norfolk and the Marine Conservation Society, the students collected 40 bags of litter which included, amongst many other items, 948 pieces of plastic (134 of which were plastic bottles), 77 pieces of metal (including 45 drink cans), 15 glass bottles and, as there's always something random to be found whilst litterpicking, a lorry's mudflap. A bottle deposit scheme would prevent a lot of those cans and bottles polluting England's inexpressibly exquisite coastline and threatening its wildlife.
I very much hope you are enjoying your summer and that the weather is kinder to you in the next few months than it was to the poor students of UEA - what you can't see in the above photograph is the driving rain!
With best wishes
Bill Bryson Back to top
Dear Friend
I should probably warn you, since the new year's arrival my seasonal cheer has been composted along with the remains of Christmas lunch.
The amount of money spent on cleaning England's streets increased by £33m last year. We're now spending £780m a year to pluck fast food wrappers out of hedges and plastic bottles from gutters.
That's £2.1m a day clearing up after the thoughtless people who just can't be bothered to put their litter in a bin. It doesn't take a moment to realise where else that money could be better spent - better schools and hospitals, anyone?
This is ridiculous. It's just time for it to stop.
Support our Manifesto
Over the past couple of months, I've met Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg. I spoke to them about CPRE's Manifesto for the General Election, which sets out what action we want on litter and fly-tipping. I would urge you to take a look at it yourself. Even better, please email or write to your parliamentary candidate and ask them to support it.
Last chance for current MPs to support us
If you're feeling in the mood, you can also contact your current MP and ask them to sign our Early Day Motion, which sets out some of our campaign goals:
- Local councils must take more consistent and stronger enforcement action - people need to know that littering is an offence
- National government should introduce a bottle deposit scheme - it's the most effective way to reduce litter
- Local councils should be given the powers they need to take action against littering from vehicles - people should know that throwing their lunch out the window will cost them £80
- A high-profile, national, long-term education campaign, run in partnership with industry, should be introduced - short-term, localised, individually run campaigns just aren't doing the job
A more integrated approach
On the last point above, the meeting between the industry/retail sectors, national government and CPRE I mentioned in my December missive is now in the planning stages. I will of course let you know how this goes. Some of the biggest brands, whose products are some of the most littered items, will be invited to discuss what more they can do to help us stop this tide of litter.
I think that if we're stumping up an extra £33m a year, they could too.
With best wishes
Bill Bryson Back to top
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P.S. Do any of you work for Carlsberg? It's just we're trying to get in touch with them but so far they haven't responded to the two letters and five telephone calls we've made. As you know, it's not like me to give up, so I'm sure we'll get there in the end but if you can help, it would be useful if you could contact Sam.
edited by Fiona Cowan
24 July 2010