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Letter: Please clean up after yourselves, Richmond

Dear Editor, Why is it so difficult for others to properly dispose of their trash? Being a current high school student, it upsets me to see my fellow peers aimlessly discard their garbage by throwing it in the direction of the bin, having not a singl
Garbage
Garry Point garbage has been a problem for the city in the summer of 2015.

Dear Editor,

Why is it so difficult for others to properly dispose of their trash?

Being a current high school student, it upsets me to see my fellow peers aimlessly discard their garbage by throwing it in the direction of the bin, having not a single care as to whether or not their item will actually make it into the trash.

When I walk through the halls after lunchtime, it is an eyesore to see the mountains of trash collected on eating tables once students are done with their meal.

This issue has progressed to the point where my school had to ban students from eating in a designated lunch area, due to their inability to clean up the tables.

Sadly, this reality worsens outside the perimeters of my school.

When I stroll through Minoru park or Steveston Village, I see candy wrappers and empty juice boxes dispersed on the ground.

It is as if their owners have willingly decided to ignore the multitude of garbage cans that are readily available throughout the locations.

We know of the detrimental effects that littering has on ourselves, animals and the environment.

We have all seen the advertisements of the turtles whose airways and digestive tracts clog due to their accidental digestion of our marine litter, or the stunted growth of plants when harmful chemicals seep into the soil when trash is gathered.

So why do we continue to litter when the solution is so simple?

If you make a mess, clean it up! It is a basic rule we are taught in kindergarten.

My hope is to enlighten citizens that it does not take much to make a change.

The most minute contributions can have a lasting outcome.

Amanda Bradshaw

RICHMOND