City not the only area with a litter problem

These balmy summer evenings have been perfect to spend time with friends outside over a glass of wine or beer. Whole families, too, have been down to the lake shore to enjoy a picnic. Alas not everyone disposes of their litter properly and have returned home leaving it all lying there. Not that this problem affects the city alone, it has been noticed in Baar and Cham, too.
 
As previously reported, the canton has made efforts to curtail the problem with a number of anti-littering campaigns dating back to 2013. In fact even a specialist department, currently headed by Roger Naef, has been set up to see what can be done. He said that 511 people had been fined CHF 100 for dropping litter over the course of 2014.
 
He went on to explain that the cleansing departments of the individual municipalities in the canton went to great lengths to ensure there were sufficient litter bins around and that these were duly emptied. What is important in his view is that any litter left lying around is quickly disposed of. “Otherwise you get this “broken window effect”, whereby if some is left lying around, it is not long before more appears,” said Naef.
 
Meanwhile, over in Cham, council member Marc Amgwerd said much the same. He felt most people did dispose of litter properly but added the problem was accentuated in periods of hot weather, though he was pleased to be able to say that, despite the recent hot spell, less litter had been evident so far this year. The worst areas remain the Hirsgarten area and barbecue areas in the Städtler woodland where most items left are empty cans of drinks, fast-food packaging and throw-away barbecue trays.
 
Over in Baar, councillor Rolf Longhi said that the areas most affected there were by the River Lorze and the approach to the Höllgrotten caves, where, in addition to usual types of  litter, whole sets of unwanted upholstered furniture had been left.
 
Naef confirmed that items of clothing, jewellery, old mobile phones and even babies’ nappies had been left in addition to the more usual rubbish of wrapping materials, cigarette packaging and drinks containers. In fact he thinks the drinking of alcohol on these hot summer nights has something to do with it, too.