Spartanburg County making strides against litter, but eliminating it appears unlikely

Spartanburg County continues to make strides in tackling roadside litter, but as long as people litter, the more time it will take to get rid of it, county administrators say.

"We've been talking about litter in the county (for more than 30 years)," said Spartanburg County Councilman David Britt, who was elected to the council in 1991. "We have tried unsuccessfully, but that doesn't mean we should stop."

The litter issue was raised at the April County Council meeting by Boiling Springs resident Larry Bates. Also, April was "Zero Tolerance for Litter Month" in South Carolina.

Bates said during his twice weekly jogs, he stops to pick up litter – mostly fast-food, soda and beer containers –along Boiling Springs area roads.

He said each week, the problem returns nearly as soon as the litter is removed.

"Every time I come to this meeting, I hear all about finances, the budget, how many people are moving here and businesses here, and it's growing by leaps and bounds," he said. "With those growing pains, there's more litter."

Along interstates, he said there have been times when the S.C. Department of Transportation mows grass before the litter is picked up.

"Would you mow your yard if there's garbage in there and then you've got to pick up 10,000 more pieces of garbage and it's flying everywhere?" he said.

Britt said he's seen the same issue.

Spartanburg County Councilman David Britt: Litter trashes everyone

"It disturbs me to no end to ride down the interstate and see those big mowers, or the county roads and see the big mowers running over trash and just scatter litter everywhere," Britt said.

South Carolina Department of Transportation spokeswoman Kelly Moore said the DOT has mowing crews that coordinate with litter pickup contractors "so that litter is picked up before mowing begins" along interstates.

"We also have crews that work along primary and secondary state roads," Moore said. "They particularly focus on areas that have more litter issues and rotate through those routes on a quarterly or monthly basis depending on need.

"In addition, we recently started a program with Spartanburg County Environmental to add additional crews to pick up litter on primary and secondary roads. We are seeing a positive impact on reducing litter in the area."

The "Zero Tolerance for Litter" campaign was created in 1999 by the statewide law enforcement agencies and PalmettoPride. The campaign's mission is to increase awareness of litter laws and remind people that littering and illegal dumping are crimes.

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Spartanburg County's Jamie Nelson: Litter stops when litterbugs stop

Jamie Nelson, director of the county's Environmental Enforcement, said littering will only be solved when people stop littering.

"Overall, I think it's getting better," he said. "Litter will always be around. The question is, what can local governments and the state do to solve that issue."

Nelson and his officers can issue fines if they track down a litterbug.

Just recently, a Travelers Rest man was arrested after more than 1,000 tires weighing a total of 17 tons were dumped illegally in Spartanburg County. Terry Scott Owens Jr. was charged with five counts of littering exceeding 500 pounds.

"Litter is a crime, and we need to address it," Nelson said. "It could be as simple as a cigarette butt, or someone dumping 2,500 tires."

Meanwhile, the county has a roadside litter crew that goes to the most problematic areas throughout the county, he said.

"There are still issues on roads leading to convenience centers and the landfill," Nelson said. "Either individuals don't secure their loads, or they illegally dump somewhere else."

Nelson said last year 2,480 volunteers spent a total of 8,873 hours picking up nearly 15,000 pounds of litter. In addition, 14,200 pounds of recyclable material was collected, he said.

So far in April, he said his department has issued 29 citations and eight warnings for littering. He urges residents to contact law enforcement if they see anyone littering.

KeepOneSpartanburg Beautiful tackles 25,000 pounds of litter

Claire Roussos, the coordinator for the county's Keep OneSpartanburg Beautiful, said there have been 42 organized cleanups so far this year in the county, resulting in 25,000 pounds of litter picked up.

"It always helps our volunteer turnout when town leaders are involved in these cleanup efforts," she said. "We had a great reception in Cowpens and Pacolet by their town administrators. Students are also active in supporting our cleanup efforts.

"Unfortunately, the major roadways are always a challenge and they happen to be the highly visible areas that people notice litter on," she said. "Lots of window litter by passing vehicles. We also see roads that are cut-throughs that aren't monitored by residents or businesses, so they are prime for folks dumping entire bags of household trash or unwanted furniture like mattresses."

City of Spartanburg: Litter volumes remain steady

Last year, the city's litter crew picked up 2,114 bags of roadside litter, amounting to 25,360 pounds, city spokesman Christopher George said.

"We're seeing roughly the same kind of volume so far this year," George said. "Typically, our most problematic areas for litter are where we've found large groups of individuals experiencing homelessness who are camping."

George said city neighborhood associations have been actively reporting litter problems and organizing pickup events.

"We've got great engagement from our residents around the litter issue," he said.

Like Bates and Nelson, Roussos said it seems as if the problem returns nearly as soon as it is addressed.

"We are seeing about the same amount of litter, but we know these behavior changes take time," she said. "It's also a perception thing. When you see active groups cleaning up and taking pride in their community, it helps support that positive behavior of not littering."

She said the most commonly littered items include fast-food and beverage containers and cigarette butts.

"Probably the strangest item was a coconut we found in Saxon," she said.

Quick tips to avoid littering:

➤ Everyone can secure their vehicles' loads, preventing any items from coming out and becoming roadside litter.

➤ Everyone can place their waste in the proper receptacle or location.

➤ Remember illegal dumping is not allowed on private or public lands or in our waterways.

➤ Remember our private properties are not sanitary landfills.

– Source: Spartanburg County Environmental Enforcement Department

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Litter remains a problem in Spartanburg County, despite 'Zero' goal