(SC2) Litter, litter everywhere – the problem ain’t going to stop there!

Imagine getting out of your house and you walk down the stairs to get some fresh air. You just want to release all the stress in you, thinking that the playground near your house would be a perfect place to do so. How would you feel if this was not the case? As you walk down, you see Styrofoam boxes lying around, drink packets thrown everywhere and food packaging open, with the food still inside and spilling out. You want to relieve stress, but instead, on the way down, you are ‘accompanied’ by hordes of rubbish on the floor. Littering has always been a problem here. Even with talks and campaigns trying to stop people from littering, this problem still continues to exist. If even the supposedly caring people who are interested in eco-tourism are litterbugs, what hope is there to stop this problem? Perhaps the question we should be asking ourselves is not who is going to pick it up, but how do we prevent litter from even reaching the ground in the first place?

Even though littering might seem like a minor thing, do not be mistaken. Just by littering something as little as a bottle cap can cause big problems in the community. When a bottle cap is left on the floor, water from rain or dew will be stored in the bottle. When there is stagnant water, mosquitoes such as the Aedes mosquitoes can breed and this may cause a breakout of dengue fever in the neighbourhood. When many residents fall ill with dengue, their daily lives will be affected. For adults, they will not be able to go to work. This can be a serious problem if the person is the sole breadwinner of the family. Their pay would be cut, making them unable to support their family. For children, they would not be able to go to school. Their studies would be affected as they will find it hard to catch up with the rest of the classmates. The problem is that anyone who has dengue does get well in just one day; it can take up to one week. Everything would be disrupted and they cannot put it back on track as a lot of things have already passed.

Not only would it affect the hygiene of the community, their safety and community would also be affected. How is this so? Well, if a fire were to break out in an HDB flat, for example, the lift could not be used and the only way down and out would be the staircase. Imagine how difficult it would be if the staircase is stuffed with litter. Residents would take a slower time to go down the stairs as they would have to slowly avoid the litters. Also, if the litters are big bags, the passage way would be narrowed. If the movement of people slows down, it just increases the risks of the people getting involved in fire-related accidents.

Furthermore, having litter everywhere will also give a very horrible impression of the neighbourhood to others. When they go to visit someone in that area or just want to hang out there, and they see a lot of rubbish on the floor, they will feel uncomfortable going around there. If less people visit, the mood wil change from lively and happy to emotionless and silence. Everyone will look down on the neighbourhood and if tourists find out about this, tourism rates can fall and this will badly affect the economy.

It is not a secret. Litter has many effects on the environment. It is extremely unsightly can injure others. We need to remember, that littering will affect the health, safety, and even the economy. IF we stop all this, the world would be a better world to live in.