Contents Introduction CHAPTER ONE THE TROUBLE WITH LITTER More Than Ugly Bad Eating Habits Mistakes Animals Make Who's in Charge of Litter No Mess No Stress 6 CHAPTER TWO WHERE LITTER IS BORN A Look at Litterbugs Guess the Mess Waste Woes Is This Littering Prevention Is Best 8 10 11 14 15 16 19 19 20 22
CHAPTER THREE WASTE IN THE WILD This Habitat Is My Home The Decay Factor How Long Does Marine Debris Last Pollution From Land to Sky Put Out the Fire Traveling Trash Sinking Litter Reach Down Pick Up CHAPTER FOUR LET'S FIX THIS PROBLEM People with Plans Sensational Solutions Marvelous Machines Could You Be an Anti Litter Activist Cost of Waste Combating Litter A Litter Free Tomorrow Starts Today Acknowledgments Resources Glossary Index 24 26 27 28 28 29 30 31 34 35 36 37 37 39 41 42 43 44 46
6 FLY TIPPERS Introduction 50,000 One way to reduce littering is to empty trash bins frequently Increasing the number of containers in busy public places also helps LOIS GOBE SHUTTERSTOCK.COM When I was 11 years old I volunteered for the annual Alberta spring highway cleanup I thought I'd done my share after filling a couple of garbage bags and heaving them into the back of a pickup truck But it turned out our group was expected to clean several miles of highway The horrifying amount of trash we found left me wanting to understand why people treat our environment this way I wondered What does all this litter mean for the animals we share the planet with Walking down a street or through a park you probably notice garbage too You might dodge a cigarette butt crumpled tissue or glob of gum It's foul and germy and unpleasant It's natural to wonder why people don't just use trash cans
Most will agree that scattered waste is unsightly It's more than ugly though Litter can have a major effect on wildlife pets and farm animals Tossed trash often ends up in water It travels long distances from rivers to seas adding waste to our oceans Animals that get tangled in litter or eat plastics or poisonous objects may become injured or sick Many die What will it take to clean up our planet Around the world people are trying to answer this question In this book you'll discover the many ways litter can hurt animals how people are finding solutions and what you can do to help prevent litter Remouing gum from pavement and other surfaces is a costly and time consuming chore Modern chewing gum creates plastic waste that may last from tens to hundreds of years before breaking down AFRICA STUDIO SHUTTERSTOCK.COM You can help restore animal habitat by picking up litter Cleanup campaigns help raise awareness about the consequences of litter and inspire volunteers to reduce their use of plastics STOCK ASSO SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
