It is a proven fact that the more untidy and dirty a place is, the more untidy and dirty it will become. If we could maintain clean and tidy streets, there would be more encouragement for people to keep them that way. We are all responsible for the surroundings in which we live and, therefore, we are all responsible for making sure that we do not drop litter.
We cannot blame the council for not cleaning the streets. There should not be any litter in the streets. How many times have we heard the complaint ‘I pay my council tax – the council should do it’? Surely we should be making sure that at least the area around our own home is free from litter. There are areas that we cannot keep clean, such as the railway station that is the place that visitors see first on arrival and creates such a poor impression of our town. Some years ago a local campaign was launched which succeeded in tidying up the station but of recent time this has been neglected.
But we are only reacting to the problem when we strive to get our streets clean. Parents and teachers should be instilling local pride into children, making sure that they do not drop litter. If they have brought along a chocolate bar or a packet of crisps, it is easy to carry the empty packet back home if there is no litter bin nearby. Other countries have this culture where everyone is responsible and so their towns are much cleaner.
Punishment is not the answer but prevention is. If you can, pick up that sweet wrapper outside your home and create a clean, tidy street that others may be enthused to maintain.
No comments:
Post a Comment