O'Brien Outdoors: Be a Good Steward
All Litterbugs Are Sons of Bees; Some Are Buttheads
One of the attractions to living in our geographic locale is the changing seasons. For many, spring is the most welcomed. Warmer days, a renewal of life and the melting away of the snow all make springtime agreeable. But with this splendor comes an ugly side. When the snow disappears it uncovers the unpleasant scars of litter on our landscape.
Three circumstances prompted me to write this column. First was a visit to a favorite fishing area where trash lined the edges of the parking area. The next disgusting sight was a pile of dumped cigarette butts in a parking lot. I wasn’t aware a car’s ashtray held that much.
The final distasteful scene occurred as I traveled along Route 15. Several white plastic bags raced across the ground like urban tumbleweed. Others, hanging from the naked tree branches along the highway, waved in protest to the breeze.
It’s hard to imagine that some people just don’t get it. I don’t understand how a person can knowingly litter. However, most seem blissfully ignorant. Litter comes in the form of cans, wrappers, plastic bags and bottles, paper, fast food containers, tires, cigarette butts, construction debris, bait containers, discarded fishing line; anything that should have been recycled or placed in a proper garbage container.
I know I’m going to step on some nicotine-stained fingers here, but cigarette butts, cellophane wrapping, foil inserts, packaging, and other related tobacco products constitute a large percentage of litter, especially in urban areas. Cigarette butts may seem small, but with an estimated 4.5 trillion littered worldwide every year, they do have an impact. Cigarettes are the most littered item in America.
Once a cigarette butt is discarded, typically rain or wind carries it into a water supply. Toxic chemicals the cigarette filter was designed to trap leak out into aquatic ecosystems, threatening the water quality and the many aquatic lifeforms. Butts have been discovered in the stomachs of young birds, fish, turtles and other animals. Young children frequently try to eat cigarette butts they discover. In addition, flicked cigarettes are the cause of many fires. Composed of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic, cigarette butts take as long as 15 years to biodegrade, and ruin the aesthetic quality of any environment.
It’s hard to get around the use of plastic. However, plastic is a recyclable resource. Plastic litter kills an estimated 1 million seabirds, over 100,000 sea mammals and countless fish each year. After the animal decays, the plastic can repeat the deadly act. Plastic bags are particularly problematic as they can last from 20 to 1,000 years, and travel long distances easily in the air and water. Refuse (ask for paper), reuse and recycle plastic bags. Most grocery stores have recycling containers available.
Litter deterioration is a slow process and the following hopefully will open those eyes presently closed. Breakdown of paper- up to 6 weeks; a candy wrapper- 3 months; wool socks- 1 to 5 years; orange or banana peel- up to 2 years; plastic coated paper- 5 years; nylon fabric- 30 to 40 years; leather- up to 50 years; tin or steel cans- 50 to 100 years; plastic six-pack holder- 450 years; aluminum cans- up to 500 years; glass bottles- 1 million years; plastic bottles- indefinitely.
It may surprise you that biodegradable items such as apple cores can contribute to water pollution by causing toxic algal outbreaks and deplete water of oxygen as they decay.
Use a litterbag inside your car and boat. When fishing, or any time for that matter, pick up litter and properly dispose of it. Do your part to be a good steward of our waterways.
