Litter is a very visible problem - it's easy to see how a playground awash with crisp packets and chocolate bar wrappers can give a bad impression of the whole school.
However, by carrying out regular litter surveys and making sure grounds are litter-free, both pupils and the local community will quickly notice improvements in the school's appearance and image. Cleaning up will also help to foster a sense of personal pride and responsibility in pupils.
You can find out more about Litter and what other schools are doing about it in our Summer 2007 newsletter.
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What is litter?
What is litter - and in what way does it differ from the other Eco-Schools topic of Waste Minimisation?
Although these two topics are closely linked, the best way to describe litter is to say it is waste in the wrong place. That is, rather than being placed in a bin or other waste container, it's left on pavements, parks or school fields. Like graffiti and vandalism, litter is untidy and unsightly and can affect people’s view on the quality and safety of an area.
Litter can consist of anything from a dropped sweet wrapper to a pile of discarded tyres in a public park. The majority of litter comes from people dropping it either on purpose or by accident, although some litter comes from other sources, for example litter that has blown in from elsewhere.
Litter is always caused by people. Although you could say that Nature causes its own litter - eg dead leaves and twigs - the difference is that Nature's litter is fully biodegradable. It rots away quickly, enriching the soil and supporting the growth of new vegetation as it does so. Human litter, on the other hand, can take a long time to degrade naturally and can sometimes hang around indefinitely, ruining the appearance of our towns and countryside.
Dangerous litter
Litter doesn't just spoil how things look - it can also be a health hazard. Food litter can attract rats and flies, which spread disease. Dog fouling in public places (another form of litter) is a serious health risk, particularly for young children.
Litter can also be lethal to wildlife. Drinks left in discarded bottles often attract small mammals such as mice which can squeeze into the bottles but are very often unable to get out again. Discarded fishing lines can maim and kill birds. Plastic bags can look like food to some grazing animals and marine life, but can kill if swallowed.
Litter, schools and the law
Many schools have a litter problem to some degree. Controlling litter, and making sure that school grounds are cleaned up regularly, is an important priority. A school with a serious litter problem:
- attracts complaints from local residents and businesses.
- is off-putting to visitors.
- can be demoralising for staff and pupils.
- can be dangerous, due to broken glass or cans on the playing field.
- is breaking the law.
In terms of the law, all local authorities have a responsibility to make sure that the grounds of their schools are kept free of litter. Any private individual can take a local authority to court for having litter in a school's grounds if the litter is still present five days after the individual has given the authority written notice of their intention. The authority could be fined up to £2,500 plus a daily fine until the litter is cleared.
You can find out more about the legal implications of litter from Keep Scotland Beautiful's Litter and the Law information page.
What can schools do about it?
The first challenge on the way to becoming an Eco School is to aim to eliminate litter in the school grounds - permanently! The Litter section of the Eco-Schools Scotland Handbook provides a four-step strategy to tackling this.
The Useful Local Contacts section of this website contains further helpful information, and our Activities pages have additional ideas for you to try.
Has your school had a great idea for tackling a litter problem? If so, why not share it with everyone in our Forum?
Litter - Eco-Schools Objectives and Learning Outcomes
Objectives
- to show that litter is an environmental issue.
- to put a litter policy into place.
- to demonstrate that litter reduction and prevention is an ongoing process that involves all members of the school community.
- to regard litter clearing as a positive environmental action - do not use it as a punishment.
- to show pupils that litter prevention improves the environmental quality of the school and its neighbourhood.
Learning Outcomes
Through work on litter, pupils should be enabled to:
- identify the impact of people on places and environments.
- devise and carry out a survey using fair sampling.
- use and draw maps, defining and using keys.
- collect, interpret and present data in different forms, using information and communication technology (ICT) where appropriate.
- work co-operatively with others.
