Essay on Legal Ramifications of Littering
Before we proceed to the legal ramifications of littering, let us make it clear regarding what littering is. Litter is a sort of rubbish that has been improperly disposed, at wrong location and usually without any consent. In other words, littering is about throwing away various objects on to the ground instead of putting them into the recycling or garbage bin. In general, any kind of waste from factories, private houses or industries must be placed either in the waste to energy plant or in the recycling bin. All the other cases are simply illegal. Although the fines may vary from state to state, as well as by county and by city, people will definitely be charged in case they are caught littering.
Among the ramifications that are caused by littering, it is important to point out that litter can become the cause of serious accidents. All that is required for the accident to happen is just some trash thrown on the road. Whether it’s because some driver accidently drives his Mercedes over some wooden crate on the road or some other person swerves his Toyota in order to avoid the trash, a car accident can be caused by littering on the road. And car accidents, as we all know, cause severe injuries and even deaths.
The wildlife suffers greatly from the littering, experts say. Animals may simply get trapped or even poisoned with a variety of litter. The filters or butts from cigarettes are pretty dangerous for the world of wild creatures. What is more, they have been found in the stomachs of whales, fish and birds, who have thought that it was just a kind of food. In addition, the fluffy ones can get serious discomfort and trapped in the rubbish. For instance, the plastic that we usually make use of in order to hold beverage cans together can simply get wrapped around the necks of the animals and cause the suffocation. And finally, animals can be harmed by broken glass found here and there in a grass.
Illegally dumped rubbish can pollute the air we breathe, leach into water we drink and contaminate soil. The most hazardous in this group are the tires that can smolder for a long period of time when burned. Nowadays, thirty eight states in the US have relevant laws that ban the deposition of the whole tires in landfills.
Undoubtedly, litter can be quite hazardous. Discarded goods, sharps waste as well as pathogens caused by litter can become the number one cause of accidental harm to people.
As for the economy segment, litter carries pretty extensive cost to the area. For instance, when the question is about the United States of America, the litter cleaning usually costs hundreds of dollars for one ton that is almost ten times more than the trash disposal cost. If you really want it to stop, set a good example yourself. Stop littering now and make sure to encourage your family and friends do the same. A really good food for thought, don’t you think?