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Ian theu!
46CUMMERTIME an' the livin' is easy," the song tells
us. Unfortunately, in summertime the livin' is also
apt to be messy.
This is the time when trash-tossing litterbugs come
out in greatest numbers, reminds Keep America Beauti-
ful, Inc., the national litter-prevention organization.
"Though littering goes on twelve months a year,"
says a spokesman for the group, "the time between
Memorial Day and Labor Day is the heyday for the
litterer."
As vacation time arrives, more and more people take
to the highways across the nation. More people go
boating, hiking, fishing and picnicking. And the volume
of litter strewn across the landscape increases in direct
proportion. Furthermore, this litter will continue to
increase unless we intensify our efforts to prevent it.
The national bill for cleaning up after litterbugs
along highways is more than $100 million a year. The
taxpayer, of course, pays it. What a blessing if this
money could be put instead into such projects as new
schools, better roads, or other constructive uses!
We can take consolation, however, in a pioneering
study of the litter problem sponsored by the Glass Con-
tainer Manufacturers Institute, Inc. This study turned
up some facts that raise renewed hope for the litter-
bug's eventual extinction.
It was found, for example, that litterers, by and
large, are not psychologically, economically or socially
different from other people. Littering, rather, was found
to be a careless or thoughtless act. Carelessness and
thoughtlessness certainly can be overcome.
Also on the hopeful side, the study proved that
people are readily responsive to vigorous anti-litter
campaigns. The No. 1 remedy for littering, it was indi-
cated, is public education-education that emphasizes
the fact that littering is an anti-social, costly and often
hazard-producing pursuit.
Additionally, the educational program must be bol-
stered by adequate litter disposal facilities and up-to-
date state and local laws against littering.
The significance of these findings is that littering
can be stopped, if we apply the proper measures
against it.
With the help of organizations like Keep America
Beautiful on the national scene, and clean-up and
beautification groups on the state and local level, the
litter problem can be controlled. The rewards for suc-
cess will be great-in terms of our esthetic enjoyment
of a beautiful America, and in terms of the taxpayers'
satisfaction in whittling down a national clean-up bill
of half-a-billion dollars. **
Guest Editorial
Keep America Beautiful, Inc.
MAY, 1964
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