Inside Salisbury: Why are we so messy?
Huge amounts of rubbish collected from Wiltshire's roads and verges
by Annette J Beveridge
ALMOST 15,000kg of litter has been removed from Wiltshire’s roads in just a few months which raises an important question - why are we discarding so much rubbish onto roads?
Wiltshire Council has sent out daily patrols and litter collections across rural roads and verges and to the A303 and A36.
Areas identified as litter hotspots are cleared more frequently and there may be additional measures in place to prevent litter and to catch offenders. This includes the use of enforcement cameras.
In just three months, the efforts have extended more than 1800 miles and across A, B and C Roads.
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Cabinet Member for Highways and Street Scene, Councillor Nick Holder, said: “One of our main focuses in our Business Plan is to take responsibility for the environment and to keep Wiltshire a beautiful county with unspoilt views and landscapes. As well as being unsightly, litter can also be a danger to wildlife and drivers on our road networks. Therefore, ensuring our road networks are regularly litter picked is a crucial job for us to complete.”
The council encourages local communities to set up their own litter collection initiatives with regular events already occurring on a monthly basis.
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Councillor Holder added: “Our crews work in potentially dangerous conditions when carrying out the roadside collections so these are carefully planned and managed to ensure safety of them and other road users.
“We really appreciate the efforts of our community groups and thank them for all the work that they do to help us, but it’s really important that they do so safely, and by not putting themselves at risk, that means not litter picking on main roads.
“Ultimately, I want to remind everyone that if we all dispose of our litter correctly when out and about, or take it home with us, there would be no need for litter collections. Don’t Mess with Wiltshire, dispose of your litter correctly.”
Anyone who would like information, support or equipment to assist with a community litter pick should contact the Streetscene Community Engagement Manager at wiltshirehelpdesk@idverde.co.uk
To report litter in Wiltshire, people can go to www.wiltshire.gov.uk/litter
