An edited version of this post was published in The News, a national newspaper in Pakistan on July 30th, 2017, titled Putting the garbage where it belongs
From afar I could see tumbleweed rolling across the road which I found odd since we were winding up along a hillside, not driving along a desert plain. As we approached the object, which had momentarily become stationary in the middle of the road, it became apparent what it was: a plastic bag. We drove past, whipping it back up in the air and causing it to flutter helplessly again before finding another resting place.
Pulling over on the side of the road where one could get a view of the city lying below I stepped out with my camera, ready to capture the breathtaking view. One might say my disappointment was palpable. On the ground amongst the shrubbery and trees was a pile of garbage that had found a home. Scores of plastic bags, bottles, cans, wrappers and other organic and inorganic materials had been discarded by tourists who probably mistook it for part of the scenery.
Littering is a universal concept, not specific to just Pakistan. Yet the extent to which one finds litter in developed countries is relatively negligible, and the percentage of people littering is quite low. In Pakistan we can safely consider it to be a norm of society.
This culture of littering permeates every aspect of our life. It has become so normalized that most people do not even flinch or take heed of the trash that sits gathering right before them, or when they take off the plastic wrap of an ice cream and nonchalantly discard it as they walk by. One can witness it while on the road, a hand casually sticking out the window of the car ahead of you, letting go of a paper cup which is scooped away by the air and carried magically into a garbage bin. One does wish that could happen. And then you have the suave smoker who flicks away the remnant of his lit cigarette not stopping to think twice that it too is littering and is potentially a fire hazard. Wherever we go, our trash follows. I wonder if people even stop to consider where their garbage ends up.
Although littering stems at the level of an individual for a variety of different reasons it becomes a social issue when a large segment of society exhibits such behavior. There is a personal cost associated to disposing garbage properly: an individual must seek out a garbage bin as opposed to the immediate convenience of littering. The tendency to litter increases if trash is already present in the vicinity. Seeing other people litter implies social acceptability of such behavior and that punitive action will not being taken. Consequently with larger amounts of trash already being present the individual may argue additional trash contributed by them would not make much more of a difference. All these factors suggest a lack of shared responsibility for the welfare of the environment and of their fellow citizens coupled with a lack of understanding how such behavior is detrimental.
There is evidence that education also plays a role in the acceptance of littering: the higher the education the lower the acceptability of such behavior. This of course does not necessarily exempt people from higher income and education levels to be more environmentally-conscious. By placing the burden of responsibility to clean up a place to someone else, for example a janitor or a public sweeper, it can create a mental block for people to not care.
Convenience plays an important factor in the culture of littering. If one is unable to gain access to disposal facilities it is highly likely that many would resort to littering. Urban design isn’t much of an afterthought with real-estate developers or city planners, and it shows in many things, one of them being garbage disposal. Or for that matter the lack of it, which in itself is indicative of the pervasiveness of such a culture.
In and around spaces with high pedestrian traffic, such as marketplaces and business plazas, public garbage bins are non-existent. In the off-chance a miracle occurs and there are some their numbers are insignificant (compared to the number of people who frequent the place in a day), their capacity to hold garbage inadequate (causing them to overflow rather quickly), and a lack of regular cleanup of such infrastructure. This exacerbates the phenomenon of littering.
If this wasn’t enough of a problem it is topped off with bins being placed in awkward places a few meters away from the sidewalk (instead of right next to it), or hidden from plain view making it inconvenient for disposing of garbage and in some circumstances making even the most adamant environmentalist give up the search.
Aesthetics aside, littering poses a health hazard for humans and animals alike. Garbage attracts vermin like rats and cockroaches which are known to be carriers of disease. Groundwater can get contaminated and creates a breeding ground for dengue. It is also known to affect the psychological health of people in the community.
Also just because litter is dumped in one place does not mean it will stay there. Carried away by weather garbage can block drainage pipes, causing flooding of streets and urban areas, but also find its way to streams and rivers and eventually the ocean. Much of plastic garbage eventually disintegrates into small pieces which gets consumed by fish. These then end up on our own plates and are consumed by us, which can lead to varying health problems.
All of this seems much of a tall order to handle and many may argue nothing can be done. It is essential to break free from a fatalist view of life whether our own or the collective lives of society. Culture can change but it begins from behavioral changes of individual citizens. It requires each of us to take stock of our own actions and rectify them if need be. Other measures can be implemented to shift the cultural mindset in the proper direction.
Negative reinforcement in the shape of fines can be used to inhibit people from incorrectly disposing trash. This does require an active imposition of fines which can be done by targeting areas with high volumes of pedestrian traffic like marketplaces, parks and shopping malls. Social shaming is another methodology, albeit informal, that keeps everyone in check.
These however need to be aided with positive reinforcement strategies such as educational programs in schools and campaigns by municipal governments promoting the proper disposal of garbage and the benefits it has for the environment, and subsequently public health. Being in a religiously driven country it would also be helpful to invoke religious sentiment to accelerate the adoption of cleanliness.
And it is imperative that garbage disposal becomes a priority of municipalities. Providing adequate and appropriate placed disposal infrastructure in high pedestrian traffic spaces along with regular cleanup is crucial to ensuring such habits are reinforced.
An initiative by Volkswagen called “The Fun Theory” tried out an idea in Sweden where they attempted to make throwing away garbage fun. A bin was retrofitted with a sensor and a speaker and whenever something would be disposed a sound would be emitted making it seem the object was falling down a deep well, eventually hitting the bottom. This not only engaged citizens - making it more fun and intriguing to throw away garbage - but it also showed an increase in the disposal rate of garbage.
All these are societal factors that can aid in weakening the culture of littering. But as mentioned earlier it begins with the individual. We need to start being more conscientious when it comes to taking care of our environment. If we are unable to find a garbage bin then we ought to carry our trash back home. Perhaps pick up someone else’s discarded item and dispose of it properly. Advocating for better facilities in our city or neighborhoods by calling the mayor or relevant authorities is another step to starting this conversation at a governmental level. Forming community cleanup groups can also be a way to set an example as well as spreading the word to other citizens of the importance of environmental cleanliness.
Maybe once people have become conditioned to throwing garbage in bins can we even begin the conversation of sorting garbage based on type (recyclables, compost, trash). I’ll hold onto my garbage till then.
Influences for the article
Dur and Vollaard, [2012], The Power of a Bad Example - A Field Experiment in Household Garbage Disposal, https://papers.tinbergen.nl/12061.pdf
Oluyinka and Balogun [2011], Psycho-sociocultural Analysis of Attitude towards Littering in a Nigerian Urban City, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/253953143_Psycho-sociocultural_Analysis_of_Attitude_towards_Littering_in_a_Nigerian_Urban_City_1_Ojedokun_Oluyinka_and
Khawaja and Shah [2013], Determinants of Littering: An Experimental Analysis, http://www.pide.org.pk/pdf/PDR/2013/Volume2/157-168.pdf
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