I was out walking in a popular Worcester park last weekend when I was drawn to a number of items hanging from a small tree next to the footpath. At first sight these appeared to be just a collection of plastic bags that had got picked up by the wind and blown into the trees branches.
On closer inspection I realised that the plastic bags were actually something far more sinister. The smell of dog faeces within what initially appeared to be an innocuous looking plastic bag was quite gut wrenching in the warm weather. Some dog owner(s) had obviously come out walking their dogs and been well prepared to clear up after their dogs before bizarrely wrapping them up in a plastic bag and throwing them in the bushes next to the public footpath. I really cannot understand the logic of such action, particularly when I discovered a dog bin a few hundred yards further up the footpath. Within a few days these bags are likely to split open spilling their contents back down to earth again – small children have been known to become blind as a result of microbes within dog faces and perhaps well intentions actions could end in immeasurable consequences.
I am afraid I get a bee in my bonnet when it comes to litter in general. I cannot understand the mentality of those who drop litter whether its in our streets, parks, seas or wider countryside. Many years ago when I was working on the coast in North Norfolk I came across a distressed seal with a flipper that had been caught in a discarded fisherman’s net. The net had got so entangled around the flipper that it had been partially severed – the seal was taken to a seal sanctuary on the coast but the damage was so great that it was never released again.
Its good to see that local authorities including Worcester are starting to take more enforcement action against those that litter. I don’t believe however that even if caught, a £50 or £70 fine is enough incentive to prevent the problem. I actually think that the fines should be much higher or those that are caught are forced to spend some time clearing up other peoples mess. Why can’t these people be made to clear up some of the mess they created in the first place? Instead of a £50 fine the penalty should be half a day clearing up the mess in our streets, parks or other green spaces.
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