As more and more restaurants and fast food companies move away from the use of plastic straws, environmental advocates are saying that plastic straws are not the worst offender on the current litter list. Noah Ullman, CMO of Keeping America Beautiful says, “Straws are getting a lot of news, but on a volume basis, straws are literally a drop in a bucket.”
Keep America Beautiful is a national nonprofit organization that works with hundreds of establishments to end litter in America.
According to a nation-wide study by Keep America Beautiful, plastic straws did not make the top five most common forms of litter. However, the top five offenders are not too surprising:
Cigarette butts
Paper
Food wrappers
Confections
Napkins/tissues
Unfortunately, most of the items in this list do not become “litter” accidently—they are carelessly discarded by people intentionally. According to Mark Dancy, president of Waste Zero (leading hundreds of waste-reduction programs nationwide), “The products themselves generally aren’t bad in and of themselves. They become bad if you don’t recycle them. The worst is if they become litter.”
Here is some information about littering the materials listed above:
Cigarette butts – Despite smoking rates drastically dropping in America, trash from tobacco products is the number one most littered material in our country. Unfortunately, improperly discarded cigarette butts in Florida, for example, end up in waterways, posing serious risk for marine and ocean life. According to its 2018 report, the Ocean Conservancy collected more than 2.4 million cigarette butts with plastic filters along the world’s beaches and waterways. Additionally, most cigarette filters are made of a type of plastic that isn’t biodegradable. In California, we’ve seen many of these cigarette butts be the cause of tragic, massive wildfires.
Fast food wrappers and cups – Styrofoam, paper, and plastic cups are a common sight along our highways, freeways, and streets in California. California Department of Transportation’s Mark Dinger said litter removal totaled approximately $67 million last year.
Plastic bags – According to the New York Department of Transportation, plastic bags (empty or full of garbage) are some of the most common pieces of littered material in the entire state. Between April 2017 and March 2018, the Department of Transportation in New York has reported collecting more than 73,000 bags of trash and other litter. Additionally, plastic bags of any kind are a huge problem in coastal areas like Malibu, Venice, Hermosa, or Manhattan Beach where advocates state birds, sea mammals and other marine life eating the litter—which can absolutely ruin animals’ digestive tracts.
Food – While food materials may biodegrade sooner than plastic or paper materials, leaving food iteams outside of a trashcan or discarded along the road is still considered illegal in most states (including Texas). Aside from making areas dirty, leftover food can also attract animals to busy roadways posing extreme risks to animals and motorists alike. So the next time you think about tossing that apple core out of your car window, consider the consequences of your actions.
Napkins/tissues – These aren’t the only common items that were summed up into the top 5 categories of littered items. The other items tied for fifth most commonly littered items include receipts, gum wrappers, plastic bottles, and beverage cans.
All things considered, any litter is bad litter. Please remember to be mindful of your actions and the impact they will have on the environment, your community, and overall livelihood of those around you (including our animal friends). Take 2 Services has dedicated our services to preventing litter and keeping our projects and neighborhoods clean and you can too! Give us a call today for tips and tricks in reducing waste and increasing recycling from your project today! (844) 88TAKE2 or (844) 888-2532