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 LITTER
Did you know….
In 2004, over 7,700 volunteers cleaned and documented over 215,000 pounds of debris at 312 sites across NY. Coordinated throughout New York State by the American Littoral Society. |
Litter comes in many forms. It includes cigarette butts, tires, and coffee cups. It is found on our sidewalks, in our roads and in our parks and our private property. Some litter is unintentional – mistakenly ending up in the ground or in our waterways. However, much is intentional – a behavioral choice based on apathy, lack of social pressure to do the right thing, ignorance of the law and an absence of consistent enforcement. People who litter represent a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds.
LITTER HURTS LONG ISLAND SOUND
In addition to litter being unsightly, causing potential safety problems on our roadways and sidewalks, litter is a problem when it is carried into our waterways ending up in Long Island Sound. Long Island Sound, our region’s greatest treasure, is affected by many types of pollution. Litter is one that can be prevented.
After litter hits the ground, it can be blown directly into the Sound by wind, it can go down the storm drain and be emptied into Long Island Sound or it can enter any tributary in the watershed and drift down to the Sound. While all forms of litter can be extremely dangerous to aquatic life, the most common form of litter affecting the Sound is floatable debris.
LITTER IS A SAFETY CONCERN FOR ANIMALS
Floatable debris are objects found floating on the surface of the water or washed up onto shore. While most people think that marine life can avoid litter, in actuality they cannot. Floatable debris causes problems for Long Island Sound and its inhabitants in two ways: ingestion and entanglement. Floating litter often becomes mistaken for food and is ingested by birds, sea turtles and other marine life. When ingested, litter can cause suffocation, starvation or poisoning.
FACTS |
- Cigarette butts, the single most littered item in America, is composed of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic that can persist in the environment for 10-12 years! An estimated 4.5 trillion non-biodegradable cigarette butts are littered worldwide.
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- The next most significant offender is floatable litter that contains polystyrene. When ingested by animals who mistake it for food, polystyrene can poison and/or clog stomachs leading to death by either toxicity or starvation. Once released into the environment, polystyrene will NEVER decompose to a non-recognizable form.
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- Entanglement occurs when animal becomes inextricably wrapped in or ensnared up by something. In many cases litter can entangle an animal swimming by. If the animal is unable to extricate itself, it can suffocate or drown.
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- Six packs rings are estimated to cause 6 million sea bird deaths a year and over 100,000 marine mammal deaths. The plastic used to create the rings takes 450 years to decompose!
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- Plastic shopping bags, which can result in both suffocation and drowning, take between 10-20 years to decompose.
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- Not only is litter unsightly to the beaches and shores of the Sound and dangerous to aquatic life, it can create economic consequences. Long Island Sound contributes $6 billion per year to the bi-state region: $800 million in commercial fishing, $1 billion in recreational fishing, $3.3 billion in boating, $750 million in swimming/visiting the beach, and $150 million intrinsic value. These figures do not include real estate values, the importance of the Sound as a water highway for commercial boat traffic, or the sixteen seaports. Even with these figures the value that the culture and history of this costal region has, can never be evaluated- it is truly priceless
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