Dropping litter is unsightly, unpleasant and is an environmental crime! Many people regard the spoiling of our towns and countryside with litter as antisocial behaviour. The Council and partners, including Police Scotland and Civic Pride, are determined to stamp this out by improving services, education and enforcement.

The most commonly found litter is litter from smoking, drinks, sweets and crisps and fast food. Make sure you dispose of your waste in a bin. If litter is not picked up, it can take many years to decompose. Here are some examples of how long common types of litter would take to decompose:

• Banana skins and fruit peelings - 2 years
• Cigarette ends - 2 years
• Drinks cans - 80 - 100 years
• Plastic carrier bags - 10 years
• Glass - 100 000 years
• Plastic bottles - indefinite

Litter is also dangerous to people and animals:

• Plastic can holders can choke
• Fishing line can strangle
• Broken glass bottles can cut
• Balloons and plastic bags can suffocate
• Cans can trap

There are Community Safety Officers employed across Dumfries and Galloway who regularly patrol our towns and villages, providing anti-littering advice and when the situation demands, they can also issue fixed penalty notices to those who carelessly discard litter. A £50 fixed penalty notice can be incurred by dropping litter in the street, and a fine set by a court for non payment could be as much as £2500.

The Council provide and maintain bins to prevent the dropping of litter in public places and arrange for the bins to be emptied on a regular basis. Litter and debris from ground managed by the Council is removed by DGFirst Neighbourhood Services.