Dear Editor,
Litter continues to be the most prolific ground cover in Baldwin County. It is the scourge of almost every street and road in the county. This is not a new problem. The guilty person continues to be YOU! It is because of your children! It is because of your family!
It is because of your neighbors! It is because of your friends. It is because of your employees! That about covers everybody.
We must break the cycle in our community culture that accepts littering as acceptable behavior. Families in our community must teach old and young that creating litter is a terrible problem in our neighborhoods. We must teach our children in our schools that causing litter hurts the whole community.
Our business community must ensure their employees are respectful of their workplaces and homes in our community. Work vehicles must learn to cover their trucks and trailers to ensure work refuse does not become litter.
Our law enforcement organizations should treat litter and blight as a problem that damages our families and community. Our judicial system should ensure those who litter and create blight know they have harmed our neighbors and our community.
Our elected officials should be encouraged to create and enforce appropriate ordinances to maintain and improve the quality of life in Baldwin County.
Your county government cannot fix our litter problem, but the county has not ignored it. During 2023, community service persons supervised by a Baldwin County employee have cleaned approximately 125 miles of your county roads.
They picked up approximately 1,100 bags of your trash, resulting in approximately 6,700 pounds of your litter. What a waste of your county's resources!
It takes approximately 10 years for the filter of your cigarette to decompose, 450 years for your plastic bottle to degrade, and 500 years for your aluminum beer can disappear. Your grandchildren’s grandchildren will be looking at your litter.
Only you can cure the problem of litter. Your local government can only pick up some of the mess you make! If you want to make a difference, support organizations like “Keep Milledgeville and Baldwin Beautiful.” Even better, stop anywhere and pick up the litter!
Henry R Craig, Baldwin County Commissioner, District 4