Overton Litter Pickers

By TED and WEN LUNT

We are litter pickers for Keep Wales Tidy in and round Overton. We are shocked by the amount of toxic polluting litter waste we pick up every week, which is only getting worse. The amount of litter being thrown is out of control, and we want to see more done to stop the litter throwers.

Between 2020 to 2023 we picked up over 1,000 red bags full of items thrown from vehicles. This, on average, mean 150,000 people have thrown a piece of litter in the Overton area during this time.

It is against the law to throw litter out of your car, or drop it in the street. But we are seeing a total disregard for this law.

We are picking up hundreds of sweet wrappers and crisp bags (made from nonbiodegradable material which can take take 50+ years to break down). Plastic bottles, beer bottles, cans, wine and spirit bottles.

E-cigarette vapour cases are now everywhere! We are also finding many other items, including human urine in plastic bottles which if not picked up, will be there for years - it’s disgusting, plus damaging our environment.

If you want to see more done to stop people from throwing litter from their vehicles, please write to your local MP, and the Welsh Assembly, as so much more could be done.

It takes a second to throw litter, but it takes hours and a lot of effort to pick it up. Take your litter home and put it in your recycle bin provided by your council.

Picking up litter doesn’t solve the problem, it just hides it until the next lot arrives.