Taking action against litter

admin
, 13 December 2022
Taking action against litter

By Tamara Jewell

Community Project Officer, Gatwick Greenspace Partnership

It began with a mission! To battle Birch, Bramble and Bracken amongst the Heather at Tilgate Park, but the Gatwick Greenspace Partnership (GGP) Youth Rangers came across another problem threatening the heathland habitat in the form of empty cans, bottles and other discarded items.

Brandon, one of our attendees from Manor Green College, was particularly incensed at the carelessness of litterbugs and wondered what could be done to discourage people from throwing away their rubbish in the countryside.

After some discussion, it was decided that we would make a short video to get the message out there. Luckily, another member of the group David, is a budding wildlife photographer and film maker, so we made a plan for the next Youth Rangers session. Some of the group are passionate birders so we combined bird watching with litter picking and film making.

It was a beautiful day at Tilgate Park with the last of the autumn leaves glimmering in the sunshine. We watched a variety of birds going about their business, from the majestic gliding Swans and Egyptian Geese around the lake to the helter skelter action of Nuthatches and Treecreepers in the woods. A lucky few caught sight of a flash of blue, whilst the rest of us heard the shrill whistle of a Kingfisher streaking by.

Discussion throughout the day centered on how we might reduce waste and what items could be reused and recycled. In the end, at least half of what we collected was viable recycling.

Youth Rangers mused on the message they should deliver in the video and asked important questions. How do you encourage litterbugs to develop environmental responsibility? Do they even think about the costs and impacts of littering on people and wildlife? How should people be held to account for their actions, and most importantly, do we have a clapperboard for filming purposes?

This discussion informed the content of this brilliant video. It is always inspiring to see young people taking action for wildlife and it is a real privilege to work with Youth Rangers who are passionate to make a difference and increase awareness of threats to local greenspaces.

As the Youth Rangers say – Only losers litter, take you rubbish home!

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Comments

  • Linda Sims:

    Good for them! I wish more people were like them and cared about the environment!

    02 Jan 2023 11:01:00

  • Margaret Maynard:

    What a beautiful bunch of young people. I’m very old, but have infinite faith in the younger generation. I just pray that they can go on making a difference, and that we do not destroy the world for them.

    02 Jan 2023 11:18:00

  • Sandra:

    Well done. It will wake a few people up & make a difference.

    02 Jan 2023 11:26:00

  • Julie Martin:

    I am appalled at the scale of the litter problem, I think the fines should be increased – or maybe a sliding scale would be good, £80 the first time, £160 the next and so on! You would need people to keep watch all the time, especially when there are a lot of people ‘enjoying’ the area, who would volunteer?

    02 Jan 2023 11:59:00

  • Badara N Bajo:

    Brilliant and job well done.Do keep it up

    02 Jan 2023 12:14:00

  • Janie Hooper:

    Well done, youngsters!
    Shame on the rest of society for littering. Why do people find it so hard to take their rubbish home? Would they do it in their own homes?
    Our family maxim has always been to leave a place cleaner than you found it!

    02 Jan 2023 12:40:00

  • Joan MacGregor:

    Well done, Youth Rangers! I hope you get your message out to friends and family and to the rest of the people of Crawley. You deserve to be heard.

    02 Jan 2023 12:46:00

  • Lucy:

    Good for you! What a terrific job you are doing

    02 Jan 2023 13:52:00

  • Helen Worsfold:

    The only long term way to stop, or at least reduce littering in the UK, is for the message to be started in schools. The anti littering message should begin in Primary Schools and be continued throughout school life. Without that early message children will continue to copy their littering parents and their children after them and etc etc. .

    02 Jan 2023 14:18:00

  • Jennifer Davies:

    Well done to you all and Thankyou. Let’s hope your message gets through to the litter losers!!

    02 Jan 2023 16:49:00

  • Helen Burrows:

    Thankyou Youth Rangers for your hard work. It really makes a difference.
    I too am puzzled why people don’t take their litter home.

    03 Jan 2023 08:55:00

  • Gillian Matravers:

    Heartwarming to see people responding to the need for for clearing letter but depressing that despite the best efforts of so many it seems to continue unabated.

    03 Jan 2023 12:44:00

  • J M McCarthy:

    good for the Youth Rangers!

    05 Jan 2023 17:49:00

  • Marina blake:

    Marina blake I am a member please save the green 💚 word for all animals please like all the bird plus other animals please thank you from marina blake

    09 Jan 2023 19:07:00

  • Chris Corrigan:

    Super-proud of our Youth Rangers for the work they do and the excellent video they have made.
    Well done team!
    Chris Corrigan
    Sussex Wildlife Trust CEO

    04 Aug 2023 11:53:00

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