This month I was lucky enough to bump into a lady named Barbara Crow whilst on a walk around my local area. I saw her picking up litter along a pathway and it was surprising to me because I realised that we see people doing good acts for our environment far too little. I was lucky enough to be able to take down her number and interview her on the matter of litter upon our streets.
E.K: Which association do you work for and how long have you worked there for?
B.C: I am a member of Kingston Ramblers, but the role is voluntary. I have volunteered to be a Loop Leader for section 8 of the 150-mile London Loop route - a Ramblers HQ lead initiative.
E.K: What made you want to start clearing up litter around the area?
B.C: Because of my Loop Leader role and an intense hatred of litter around any walk I do. Loop Leaders are primarily required to walk our section once a quarter at least and I chose to clear rubbish and ask others to join me.
E.K: How much of an effect do you think the litter has on our local community?
B.C: litter has an effect on our environment, the people around it and the wildlife and ecosystems who live within it. Wildlife get caught within and by rubbish, swans eat it, rubbish gets caught around animals bodies, cuts their mouths etc. A lot finds its way into streams and then rivers and oceans, pollutes the area and other sea animals eat them; crustaceans eat it and then we eat the fish and crustaceans ―so, it’s in our food too!
E.K: What sort of rubbish do you see the most?
B.C: Mostly food wrappers, crisp packets, bottles of pop, cans, takeaway food cartons, occasionally something larger like car tyres and fly-tipping rubbish, bathroom fittings and household furniture. The majority is small drink containers and sweet and crisps wrappers.
E.K: Do you feel the government and doing enough to help the situation of having litter on our streets?
B.C: Good question. No not really - certainly I hear very little about offenders being fined. Its passed to local councils to deal with and everything is driven by money. Streets are cleaned at the point when most rubbish will have accumulated, not necessarily daily. Urban areas are just not cleaned at all and its down to volunteers to clear it.
E.K: Is there any way you want to, or feel others can raise awareness about this cause?
B.C: I would like to talk to school children and ask them if they are aware if the consequences of litter, it's not directly affecting me (other than I hate seeing it) but will affect them and their children. Listen to David Attenborough he's super concerned. There's an article recently in the news about a can found from the 1990s still entirely whole; over 30 years old and older than you and maybe your parents too! That's unsustainable.
E.K: What can everyone else do to help overall?
B.C: Think about the consequences of litter, it affects us all and we are starting to eat plastics on our plate. Pacific islands totally uninhabited are having rubbish wash up on the shores and birds breeding there are eating it and dying. Their chicks have no mother, so they die. That's just the tip of the iceberg. Have a chat with friends you see dropping litter, why not bin it or take it home?
Overall, I think Barbara is truly a truly wonderful person; the work she does for our community and the amount she cares is just inspirational. I believe if we all took a leaf out of her book, our environment, society, and the world we live in as a whole would be a very different place. Just taking a second look at the roads we walk along every day is enough to showcase the problem we have― from cans to car tyres, we are not treating our environment with the respect and genuine care it deserves and we all must pitch in if we wish to save it.
Barbara also kindly included some extra links to articles on litter which would be very useful for anybody who wishes to expand their knowledge on the topic of our environment and littering:
BBC News: Decades-old litter used to teach children about the environment BBC News - Decades-old litter used to teach children about the environment
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-55498977
The can was from 1986!!!
BBC News: Isle of Man litter bugs 'should be hit in the wallet'
BBC News - Isle of Man litter bugs 'should be hit in the wallet'
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-isle-of-man-55502980
Isle of Man ideas on controlling Litter Louts BBC News: Covid: PPE litterers in Cornwall face £150 fines BBC News - Covid: PPE litterers in Cornwall face £150 fines
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-55918965
What's being done re mask and glove litter in Cornwall.
BBC News: Charity names companies behind NI litter problem BBC News - Charity names companies behind NI litter problem
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-55901890
And in Northern Ireland they're going after the manufacturers.
BBC News: Barn owl caught in discarded fishing line 'could have died'
BBC News - Barn owl caught in discarded fishing line 'could have died'
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-56086552
And a barn owl is saved from death by fishing litter BBC News: Saltburn family in month-long litter-pick Covid fundraiser BBC News - Saltburn family in month-long litter-pick Covid fundraiser
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tees-56196134
