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Click here to view the 2006 Tennessee Litter Survey
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Get Involved...Report Highway Litter(click here)
It's on the side of the scenic drive through Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It's in Reelfoot Lake. It's in the lawn of the capitol building in Nashville. It's on your grandmother's doorstep. Litter is everywhere across our state, and Tennesseans are fed up. When we asked what you thought about litter, you said,
“It's got to stop.”
“Enough is ENOUGH.”
Why should you care about litter? Let us count the ways:
$11,000,000. Yes, you read those zeros right. That's $11 million tax payer dollars our state spends picking up the trash Tennesseans throw down on the ground. That doesn't even count what your city pays to pick up litter in the incorporated areas.
12,000,000 miles are driven each year picking up litter in our state. Think about all the gas that is needed to fuel trucks for litter pick up.
18% of all littered items end up in our streams and waterways as pollution. That means litter in our state travels to other states and eventually ends up in the ocean.
The new Tennessee Litter Law is designed to help reduce some of that trash. Smaller amounts of litter will be punished by a $50 fine, while larger fines are reserved for larger amounts. Offenders can mail in the payment to the county clerk or plead not guilty and face the officer in court. If the judge finds the offender guilty, the person must pay the $50 and court costs. It is hoped that this new law will encourage more enforcement, since the fines are more appropriate for the offenses, and in most cases the officer and the offender will not have to go to court. You can read the entire litter law here.
Here is what others had to say:
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Kudos! The responsibility of litter abatement belongs to each of us and we need to take ownership of it. Once we realize that we are the problem, we can then become the solution. Go TENNESSEE!!!!
L.H. Miller, Memphis, TN
I can't understand why people can't leave their trash in their cars until they get to their destinations and throw it in a trash can. Also what's up with people throwing out their cigarate butts, that's also trash...it's a disgrace to trash up this land of the beautiful
Sharon, Fairview, TN
A lot of people think that picking up litter is disgusting and degrading. Litter is what is disgusting and degrading. If everyone would do just a little to keep the environment clean, it would make a world of difference.
Betty Edwards, Louisburg, TN
Litter and it will HURT!
Walt Thompson, Carmel, TN
What a shame to litter the beautiful landscapes we have here in Tennessee...I'm ashamed for others to see the way we treat our outdoor home!
Marianna Smith, Cleveland, TN
Anyone that litters, has no respect for the land, their fellow citizens, or themselves. It's a disgrace...
Byron C., East TN
I think the fines should be stiffer for those who dump their ashtrays and throw out cigarette butts at traffic lights. Not only is it trashy, but also a fire hazard and detrimental to everyone's health in the location of the smoker.
Anonymous, East TN
It makes you wonder how people keep their homes if they don't care about throwing out trash.
Gary B., East TN
I can't even describe to you what Knox county looks like. The road leading to my neighborhood looks like a dump. The mentality of the people in this state who do this is unbelievable. I moved here from Buffalo, NY, about a year ago. It is so much cleaner than East TN. I wish I could do more for the fight, but it appears that the root of the problem is so deep.
Thomas Wachter, Knoxville, TN
Litter is the result of self centered people who have no pride in themselves or the environment and who are quite willing to let someone else clean up THEIR mess. They should be fined and their faces on TV.
Terry B., Middle TN
Litter shows disrespect for the natural beauty that belongs to Tennessee. We all need to be active in protecting our environment.
Patty Shultz, Brentwood, TN
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