Stop the Drop - litter is blighting our countryside

Do other countries have problems with litter despoiling the countryside? And do they care? Do you care? Please let me know if this is just me, but I am getting to feel really depressed by the amount of unsightly rubbish that I see all around me in my day to day travels.
Last weekend we had occasion to take a long car journey - yes OK we would have gone by train if we could, but the destination was too remote to make this a viable option. Anyway, we drove. And all along the motorways there was litter lining the verges - not just odd bits and pieces, but everywhere, without any let up. And it made me nearly cry for the shame of being British, if this is how my fellow citizens behave. Is this how we bring up our kids, to just chuck any litter out of the car window? Is this the example the adults set them? Does no one see this for what it is, a filthy habit?Do let me know if you notice this and whether you care.
One of our most treasured imports from America, Bill Bryson is the President of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, and is a passionate anti-litter campaigner and champion of the countryside. He is currently spearheading the Stop the Drop Campaign here. Do go and have a look and see what you can do for your country.

Why England Matters
And on Tuesday 15th March, "Bill will be joining Jonathan and David Dimbleby for a fascinating talk to discuss ‘Why England matters’. The event, which will raise money for Dimbleby Cancer Care and Marie Curie Cancer Care, will take place at Merchant Taylor’s Hall, London. Click here for more information." (quoted from Bill's website - I know he will not mind me spreading this word). Perhaps it just may not be too late to take part.

stop the drop - stop the litter

I was driving to the supermarket this morning - yes I know, I should use and support the local shops more - but at least I combine that car trip with a jaunt, with my rubbish, to the recycling bins, the charity shops, the council's own rubbish and recycling centre, then on to the garage to pick up petrol, call in on a friend on the way back, pop into the church to do my regular verger duties etc. So the trip is as "green" as I can possibly make it. And if you think I live profligately with all this rubbish, it is as far as possible recyclable or compostable - the only stuff in my dustbin these days is plastic (see recent post) and I am working very very hard to reduce that even more.
So back to my trip.
The road to the shops is quite fast and dangerous, with nasty blind bends that catch incautious drivers out. There along the side of that road were council workmen, picking up bag loads of rubbish that thoughtless motorists toss out of their windows. What a dangerous job, I thought - and at a cost that we, the rate payers, indirectly pay for. A bit of serendipity here - driving back home along the same route there was an item on the radio discussing just this point - how much litter picking costs us all, and how lives are endangered when it is cleaned up.
Which is why I support everything Bill Bryson is doing with his Stop the Drop campaign, to clean up our countryside. I know I have written of this before but it is so important I make no apology.
And I am sure England is not unique in this regard - how much of a problem is litter in the States, for example. Please let me know.

If only we could all nurture a reverence, a love and respect for the natural world around us, listen to what it is telling us and be open to its healing powers.
Then we would no longer want to destroy it. We would no longer want to defile it with our gas guzzling cars, our litter and filth, our plastics, our bottles and our cans. We could regain our spirituality and seek a simpler life. We could discover humility and vulnerability and a compassion for all living beings. We could even walk barefoot upon the earth, because as Alastair McIntosh writes in Soil and Soul, we ‘tread on the earth so much more gently barefoot.’

Stop the Drop - Save our countryside from trash

Trash, garbage, litter, whatever you call it, £2.1 million per day is spent in England alone on clearing it up. 1.3 million items are thrown down each weekend!! As I drive around our beautiful countryside I am dismayed by the litter along the verges. I have followed lorry drivers and watched as they toss empty drink cans or sandwich wrappers out of the cab window. I have seen car drivers empty out their car ashtrays onto the tarmac of the supermarket car park. I have seen swans hurt through swallowing fish hooks and nylon line, birds that have died in a tangle of string or netting carelessly left lying around outside. I have seen laybys festooned with the remnants of picnics because the family could not be bothered to take their litter home.
The workers who walk along the sides of the roads with their litter picker tools and the sacks to receive the garbage are clearly putting themselves in danger - and it is all our fault! Road signs alerting us to the dangers they face are increasing in number. In France the signs give them names - hoping perhaps that personalising the sign a little in this way will get through to us, help us to heed it.

But why don't we just "stop the drop?"
The Campaign to Protect Rural England has started a campaign, headed up by Bill Bryson, who is a staunch supporter of everything British. Will you support it?

So please dispose of your litter thoughtfully and carefully, so that England may remain green and pleasant for those who come along after us.