Sunday, June 26, 2011

What is Litter

Litter was defined in the Handbook of Solid Waste Management (D.G Wilson, 1977) as:

"Litter Comprises of those solid wastes found free on the ground due to either intentional or unintentional careless disposal practices"

Webster's Dictionary defines in more simply as:

"trash, wastepaper, or garbage lying scattered about"

Regardless of which definition you prefer, litter is an undesirable consequence of human existence.  Litter at landfills is either because of waste spilled off of hauling vehicles, indiscriminate dumping of waste loads, carelessness, or it is wind blown from the landfill operations. 

Litter is comprised of both large and small items.  Large items include, but is not limited to:  cans, boxes, glass bottles and jars, paper, cardboard, plastic bags and containers, construction debris, appliances, furniture, tires, vehicle, and equipment parts.  Small items might include these and other materials:  metal pieces and nails, bottle caps, cigarette butts, glass pieces, paper pieces, and plastic pieces. 

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