Scarlets stars help litter campaign
Llanelli Scarlets rugby stars Ken Owens and Dan Newton are helping with a campaign to kick cigarette-related litter in touch.
Hooker Ken and full back Dan joined council officers in Carmarthen town centre to encourage people to bin their butts.
Radio Carmarthenshire breakfast show host Tommo was also in town along with ‘Sid the Cig’ to help raise awareness that if you’re caught littering you could get fined £75 - or more if prosecuted through the magistrates court.
Ken said: “It is important that people are responsible for their own cigarette litter and ensure that they dispose of it correctly. The benefit will be felt by the whole community, firstly by the reduction in cleaning up costs for the council and secondly it will make the county a much cleaner welcoming place for both residents and visitors.”
Free portable ashtrays were handed out to shoppers so that if they are out and about and there is no bin around there is no excuse for dropping their cigarette end on the street and awareness-raising posters were given to cafes and pubs to display on their premises.
Council environmental enforcement officers were also on patrol in the town and one fixed penalty notice for £75 was issued as well as three warning letters. A 16-year-old has also been reported to the council’s anti-social behaviour co-ordinator and a letter will be sent home to his parents!
Director of technical services Richard Workman said: “Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but it is. It makes an area look unsightly and it is difficult and very expensive to clean up as the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement. We hope people will take notice of this campaign and put their cigarette ends in the bin; we don’t want to fine people, but we will not hesitate to do so if they continue to litter in this way.”
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire. An inspection by Keep Wales Tidy found that 83 per cent of the county’s streets had visible evidence of smoking-related litter. As well as cigarette ends, the streets were littered with cigarette packets and the associated foil and cellophane wrapping, tobacco pouches and paper, cigarette lighters, matches and match-boxes.
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones said: “I hope people take notice of this campaign, our aim is to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“A number of new litter bins are being installed into our town centres which include ashtrays for cigarette ends, so there really is no excuse.”
Scarlets stars Ken Owens and Dan Newton with council cleansing operative Den Rees, Sid the Cig and executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones.
Meanwhile . . .
Three students from Coleg Sir Gar’s Pibwrlwyd campus have been issued with fixed penalty notices of £75 for littering.
Council environmental enforcement officers issued the fines in Pibwrlwyd Lane before the students attended college.
One student was seen throwing litter from a car, another was caught dropping a cigarette packet on the ground, and the third student was caught dropping a cigarette end.
Failure to pay the fines could result in prosecution in the magistrates court where the maximum fine that could be imposed is £2,500.
The college is supportive of the council carrying out patrols of the area.
And . . .
Four people have been fined £75 for throwing cigarette ends out of their car windows.
The fixed penalty notices were issued by council environmental enforcement officers following the offences at the traffic lights in Cross Hands, McDonalds in Carmarthen, and two at McDonalds in Cross Hands.
Failure to pay could lead to prosecution in the magistrates court and a maximum fine of up to £2,500.
Also . . .
see earlier post -
http://sirgarblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/no-butts-you-have-to-bin-it.html
Hooker Ken and full back Dan joined council officers in Carmarthen town centre to encourage people to bin their butts.
Radio Carmarthenshire breakfast show host Tommo was also in town along with ‘Sid the Cig’ to help raise awareness that if you’re caught littering you could get fined £75 - or more if prosecuted through the magistrates court.
Ken said: “It is important that people are responsible for their own cigarette litter and ensure that they dispose of it correctly. The benefit will be felt by the whole community, firstly by the reduction in cleaning up costs for the council and secondly it will make the county a much cleaner welcoming place for both residents and visitors.”
Free portable ashtrays were handed out to shoppers so that if they are out and about and there is no bin around there is no excuse for dropping their cigarette end on the street and awareness-raising posters were given to cafes and pubs to display on their premises.
Council environmental enforcement officers were also on patrol in the town and one fixed penalty notice for £75 was issued as well as three warning letters. A 16-year-old has also been reported to the council’s anti-social behaviour co-ordinator and a letter will be sent home to his parents!
Director of technical services Richard Workman said: “Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but it is. It makes an area look unsightly and it is difficult and very expensive to clean up as the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement. We hope people will take notice of this campaign and put their cigarette ends in the bin; we don’t want to fine people, but we will not hesitate to do so if they continue to litter in this way.”
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire. An inspection by Keep Wales Tidy found that 83 per cent of the county’s streets had visible evidence of smoking-related litter. As well as cigarette ends, the streets were littered with cigarette packets and the associated foil and cellophane wrapping, tobacco pouches and paper, cigarette lighters, matches and match-boxes.
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones said: “I hope people take notice of this campaign, our aim is to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“A number of new litter bins are being installed into our town centres which include ashtrays for cigarette ends, so there really is no excuse.”
Scarlets stars Ken Owens and Dan Newton with council cleansing operative Den Rees, Sid the Cig and executive board member for the environment Councillor Haydn Jones.
Meanwhile . . .
Three students from Coleg Sir Gar’s Pibwrlwyd campus have been issued with fixed penalty notices of £75 for littering.
Council environmental enforcement officers issued the fines in Pibwrlwyd Lane before the students attended college.
One student was seen throwing litter from a car, another was caught dropping a cigarette packet on the ground, and the third student was caught dropping a cigarette end.
Failure to pay the fines could result in prosecution in the magistrates court where the maximum fine that could be imposed is £2,500.
The college is supportive of the council carrying out patrols of the area.
And . . .
Four people have been fined £75 for throwing cigarette ends out of their car windows.
The fixed penalty notices were issued by council environmental enforcement officers following the offences at the traffic lights in Cross Hands, McDonalds in Carmarthen, and two at McDonalds in Cross Hands.
Failure to pay could lead to prosecution in the magistrates court and a maximum fine of up to £2,500.
Also . . .
see earlier post -
http://sirgarblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/no-butts-you-have-to-bin-it.html
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