I was walking the dog just outside the speed restriction signs on a fairly busy rural road and was saddened and disgusted to see the amount of rubbish strewn along the grass verges. It was endless – plastic bottles and bags, drink cans, crisp packets, biscuit wrappers and a paper bag from a clearly identifiable fast food outlet containing the detritus of a hastily consumed meal dumped from a passing car.
I find it difficult to comprehend why people just can’t put their litter in the nearest bin. I am not even suggesting at this stage that it is sorted and recycled – just not tossed aside to the elements without care or consideration.
Of course I accept that sometimes the elements conspire to exacerbate the situation, as demonstrated recently during Storm Éowyn. Aside from the twigs and branches, various contents blown out of nearby bins littered the streets. Indeed, my granny was quite surprised to learn that Sally from ‘round the back’ had recently turned 80 after some previously recycled birthday cards ended up in her back garden...
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However, I was shocked to hear recently that in Bristol they are considering scaling back black bin collections to every three or four weeks rather than fortnightly. The rationale is to encourage more recycling and, perhaps more specifically, to help the local authority save an estimated £2m per year.
I completely understand the backlash this has caused among the good people of Bristol, with more than 5,000 signing a petition rejecting the proposal. It’s all very well purporting that this will encourage ‘good behaviour’ and better recycling practices but what about the smell, the increased risk of rodent activity and the anticipated rise in incidences of fly-tipping (which according to locals is already ‘a scourge across the city’).
I have never heard of anyone being fined for not having their dog on a lead or for not picking up after their dog – so again no consequences, no worries...
How long before the same thing happens here? Recycling, I think, has been largely embraced in Northern Ireland. We diligently throw our scraps and food waste into the compost caddy and sort our cardboard, plastic, tins and glass into the appropriate bins. We make sure clothes, shoes and handbags are sold on vintage sites, donated to charity or deposited in clothing banks rather than sent to landfill. We try very hard to minimise our carbon footprint.
However, it’s very difficult to enforce such behaviour and really what are the consequences for not adhering to the council’s recycling policy? (Although I don’t believe fewer bin collections is the answer).
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It’s the same with dog mess. It seems simple – if you have a dog you must take responsibility for cleaning up after it. In my local park in Co Antrim dogs must be kept on a lead at all times but there are regular incidences of dogs running free.
These owners clearly have no idea where their dog is relieving itself as it disappears amongst trees and bushes. There is often dog mess visible on both the paths and grass (despite the four bins and numerous fixed penalty notices).
It’s disgusting and unacceptable, particularly as the park is close to a primary school and children’s play area. I have never heard of anyone being fined for not having their dog on a lead or for not picking up after their dog – so again no consequences, no worries...
Then, to make matters worse, President Trump has announced his intention to withdraw the USA from the Paris Agreement. This global accord seeks to implement objectives agreed as part of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. So suddenly there appears to be a sense of futility to my efforts... but I will continue to recycle and I will aim to be eco-friendly and I will clean up after my dog simply because it’s the right thing to do.
