Why is stewardship of the Earth important to you?
My brief career as an Insta influencer was spent documenting the items that materialized overnight on our sidewalk with the hashtag "trashfairies." The thing about trash fairies was the quicker you responsibly disposed of their treasures, the less likely they were to leave you extra. Stewardship was initially an act of self-preservation, lest we take a peek at our sidewalk one day and find a Sarah Cynthia Silvia Stout-sized berg leaving us no hope of driveway egress. Now that I'm a parent and deadpan insisting that the tooth fairy doesn't pay as much for teeth with cavities, I find Earth stewardship has broadened into a general concern about legacy. Last I checked, our short-term odds for planetary egress weren't that great. I want my epitaph to read, "She left it better than she found it."
Why is it important to keep our highways, public places, and outdoor recreational areas litter free?
My top 2 reasons for keeping areas litter free are:
(1) Litter eventually ends up the ocean where it contributes to all the microplastics floating around in the continent-sized garbage gyre, poisoning wildlife and eventually poisoning ourselves.
(2) No one wants to spend time in ugly spaces. Research says spending time outside makes us healthier. Why not do everything we can to Make Outside Attractive Again?
What adverse effects can the presence of litter have on the environment and wildlife? Tell us about these problems in three different areas of the world, such as roads, nature, waterways, urban spaces, etc.
Urban: Provides harborage for pests. Mosquitoes can lay eggs in the amount of water pooled in a discarded soda cap.
Roads: Litter can block storm drains and increase the risk of flooding. It can also create accidents if it causes drivers to swerve to avoid it.
Waterways: Litter that washes out to the ocean can harm wildlife. Plastic bags look like jellyfish, a delicacy for some turtles.
Waste Removal Sorties: (intermediate level)
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