I am totally in favour of Ryedale Council’s campaign to encourage community pride. We all have a duty to make sure we look after our environment so that everyone can enjoy it. Litter, dog fouling, fly tipping and abandoned vehicles are an unnecessary and inexcusable eyesore. The social media campaign #1piece of rubbish should encourage everyone to get involved in a simple and practical way. People are also being encouraged to report incidents of fly tipping so that offenders can be prosecuted. If each of us were to give a bit more thought to what we do with our rubbish, what we can recycle and reuse, it would make a huge difference to our local community. Ryedale Council’s campaign is an extension of DEFRA’s initiative announced earlier this year to fine litter louts £150 on the spot if they are caught spoiling our streets and countryside. Drivers who allow litter to be thrown from their car may also have automatic fines of £60, even if they are not responsible themselves. I’ve long campaigned for a crackdown on offenders and so this latest campaign is good news for us all.
