The call has gone out to residents and visitors to stop dropping
litter and so help reduce the £600,000 a year that Suffolk Coastal
is spending on clearing up other people’s mess.
While the countywide Don’t be a Tosser campaign, led by BBC
Radio Suffolk, will soon be marking its fifth year of combating
litter across the county, Suffolk Coastal is highlighting the
financial and environmental cost of rubbish.
“There really is no excuse for dropping any litter or
fly-tipping anywhere in our district as there are so many easy ways
to properly dispose of any items, whether it be in one of the
thousands of litter bins or recycling banks, or at one of the
household waste recycling centres,” said Cllr Andrew Nunn, Cabinet
Member for the Green Environment.
“The thoughtless actions of just a few people are costing us all
£600,000 a year, as that is what this Council has to spend on its
street cleaning service, money which in these tough financial times
could be much better spent.
“Discarded litter, whether it is a cigarette butt or chewing
gum, or food cartons, cans or bottles, all have an environmental
impact on our district as well. I would strongly urge the few who
are costing us all so much to be more responsible and as the
campaign says, to stop being a tosser. I would also warn those who
are littering that they risk being fined,” added Cllr Nunn.
The Council’s energies have recently been concentrated on
tackling litter caused by motorists, with over 80 caught since
April and issued with Fixed Penalty Notices for dropping
litter.
Keeping the stretches of the A12 and A14 within the district clean
of litter is one of the thankless tasks facing the Council’s
Suffolk Coastal Services teams. A dedicated crew covers these main
routes on a continuous basis routinely collecting litter that has
come from passing vehicles.
“It must be a soul-destroying job for our SCS team who are doing
such a great job clearing these main roads of quite often
unpleasant litter. They know that they will have more to start
collecting again once they return to the same stretches of these
main roads.
“I really hope that the message gets through at last to all
motorists and everyone else dropping litter that enough is enough.
Please just bag up your rubbish and throw it away or recycle it as
there are so many ways that this can be easily done,” added Cllr
Nunn.
Free pocket ashtrays for cigarette butts are on offer from SCS –
call 01394 444000 or email
scsltd@suffolkcoastal.gov.uk,
which are also the contacts details for anyone wanting to report
someone dropping litter or fly-tipping.
Anyone caught dropping any sort of litter can be issued with a
fixed penalty notice of up to £80, or risk having to pay £2,500 if
taken to Court. The penalties for fly tipping are even stricter,
with the upper limit being £50,000 or even
imprisonment.