dirty accy

fireman · 05-05-2005, 17:54

Is Accy the dirtiest town. I was driving around accy today carrying out a few chores. I have never seen as much litter and rubbish in a town in my life, and i have moved around a bit. Blackburn Road, from the Royal Bank of Scotland to the traffic lights at Church, is an absolute disgrace. All the side streets around their are the same. These are just an example many other areas are just as bad , and worse. Do the residents of Accy have no pride, people in the town centre discard of their rubbish and unwanted food on the floor not in a bin. Drivers throw rubbish from car windows. Chewing gum is everywhere you look, and why oh why is the fashion of spitting making a big comeback. The only time I ever see street sweepers, they seem to be the same two guys doing a thankless job and losing a massive battle. What can be done to clean up our town. Accrington used to be a very clean and very proud little town and personally I was quite proud to say I was from Accrington. What went wrong. What caused this downturn and why are our elected representatives not doing something about the filth in our streets. WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT.?

Billcat · 05-05-2005, 18:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by fireman

WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT.?

A couple of times a year, we have community clean up days. The various organizations in town each take some streets and go out with gloves and trash bags to get things spruced up. We also try to involve the school age kids and make a bit of a party out of it.

We also have some communities with "Adopt A Road" programs, where a business or organization takes ownership of keeping a particular stretch cleaned up. The local government puts up "Adopt A Road" signs in each section, recognizing the group keeping that patch clean.

WillowTheWhisp · 05-05-2005, 18:08

First of all we need to train the council refuse operatives to pick up the rubbish they drop on bin day. Then we need to educate people to have pride in their environment. Don't ask me how. Maybe we should have litter wardens like traffic wardens who could impose on the spot fines? The trouble with that idea is that a lot of the litterlouts would be too young to be able to pay.

PurpleLass · 05-05-2005, 18:14

I saw two boys (probably about 10 year olds) cycling down the road the other day. One of them was eating a kitkat and when he'd finished he just threw it over his shoulder. If I'd have been close enough I would have said something.

Last time I was at the bus stop and a boy (from Rhyddings School - let's be in no doubt who's mostly responsible for the sweet wrappers thrown in the close proximity of the school) threw down a wrapper, I ever so innocently said, 'excuse me but I think you've dropped something'. He went bright red and tried to be cocky to me but another lad told him to pick it up.

Billcat · 05-05-2005, 18:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

Maybe we should have litter wardens like traffic wardens who could impose on the spot fines? The trouble with that idea is that a lot of the litterlouts would be too young to be able to pay.

They could make the punishment fit the crime and require them to spend, say, ten hours of public service, cleaning up all the trash! Wearing some UK equivalent to our Department of Public Works relective vests and hard hats? Even for the adult offenders (and especially for the ones who are well off) this might be more effective that a simple fine. Nothing like the threat of being seen in public paying your debt to society to help with developing more responsible behavior.

As Mark Twain said, "Man is the only animal that blushes - Or needs to." Nothing like a bit of real or potential embarassment to get folks doing the right thing!

PurpleLass · 05-05-2005, 18:16

Once upon a time kids wouldn't throw litter because they knew they'd get a clout, if not from their parents from someone else walking past. Nowadays they know that no one can touch them so they don't care.

fireman · 05-05-2005, 18:21

i HAVE DONE THE SAME IN bLACKBUN WHEN A WOMAN WIYH HER CHILD WALKED OUT OF ONE OF THE FAST FOOD CHAINS ABD THREW ALL THE WRAPPING ON THE FLOOR 6 FEET FROM A LITTER BIN. eXCUSE ME YOU SEEM YO HAVE DROPPED SOMETHING I TOLD HER. OH NO SHE SAID ITS RUBBISH. I REPLIED AND THAT THING ALMOST NEXT TO IT IS A RUBBISH BIN. sHE THEN GOT HER CHILD TO PICK IT UP.

fireman · 05-05-2005, 18:23

I've seen the adopt a highway scheme in the USA and it seems to work. local businesses getting free advertising as a reward

Billcat · 05-05-2005, 18:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by fireman

I've seen the adopt a highway scheme in the USA and it seems to work. local businesses getting free advertising as a reward

Or community clubs, like Kiwanis, Rotary, or Lions. Both the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts also have adoptd in many towns. Those signs are not only free adverts, but they give the group a sense of ownership of that section of road. On the state and county highways in my town, there are no sections available just now, as they've all been adopted.

Of course, if a section starts looking messy, they are likely to start getting telephone calls about their obligation!

fireman · 05-05-2005, 18:34

Maybe we could make a suggestion to the councillors (clean ones)

Billcat · 05-05-2005, 18:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by fireman

Maybe we could make a suggestion to the councillors (clean ones)

Why not? Most of the good ideas I've had are ones that I had the good sense to borrow.

Margaret Pilkington · 05-05-2005, 21:16

In Australia they have a national clean up day.........and everyone gets involved in cleaning their own locality.

But really it is down to educating people to put thier rubbish in a bin. There was a litter campaign in the 60s.
I think that fining folk is not the answer.......but making them do 10 or 12 hours of picking up the litter in the town centre might just make them think twice before discarding their rubbish anywhere other that in a litter bin.

Bazf · 05-05-2005, 21:37

Just a few ideas to give to your local councilors, Detroit was an amazing project it made Accy look like Switzerland before they started and now the city is so clean and litter free.

http://www.ci.detroit.mi.us/kcc/motorcity.htm
Opened just last month, the Justice Center is one of a handful of "community courts"across the country that re-envision how the criminal justice system should operate, alternative sentences -- such as cleaning up a neighborhood parks -- aim to make punishment visible while putting offenders to work in their communities. The Red Hook Justice Center joins the Midtown Community Court, which opened in Manhattan in 1993. A similar court in Harlem will open later this year. All three are designed to address one of the criminal justice system's most glaring failures: those arrested for low-level offences often are back on the streets in a matter of weeks or months, committing crimes such as graffitti and vandalism, after cleaning it up they are the ones who police it.
More defendants in the Midtown Community Court who are sentenced to community service actually do it than in any other criminal court in the city.

fireman · 05-05-2005, 21:40

I don't think that people could be made to pick up litter these days as a form of punishment , with the system that exists these days some law lord would rule that the offenders had been discriminated against and humiliated. Then he would open the doors to some other court awarding them thousands in compensation.

WillowTheWhisp · 05-05-2005, 21:42

Oh yes do you remember the "LDV" (Litter Defense Volunteers) with the white T-shirts and armbands? Whatever happened to them? We could do with something like that.