Litter

Concrete sidewalk peppered with gum. DDOT photo.

Whenever I go to other places, I am struck by the fact that for the most part (except for manufacturing districts and so forth), they are so much cleaner compared to the streets of DC. (And many of the areas the residents of those areas describe as "bad" are cleaner than nicer areas of DC, and definitely cleaner than our respective bad areas.)

Or I should say, much cleaner than the streets of the northeast and southeast quadrants of DC, where I spend much of my time. Although when I sojourn into the northwest quadrant I see plenty of filth, and I am always amazed at the amount of spitting in the public splace as well.

So it's heartening to see that a new anti-litter campaign that appears to be broader than mere sloganeering is being launched by DC's Department of Public Works. See "D.C. Streets? Litter With Love, Not Trash," subtitled "Youthful Behavior Is Official Target," from the Washington Post.

Good resources:

• Keep Australia Beautiful (Better stuff than the U.S.)
• CLEAN CITY, PROUD CITY Johannesburg
• Litter Survey Form (from Australia)
  
• Texas Anti-Litter Program
• 2004 New Jersey Litter Survey (a favorite of DPW Director William Howland)
  

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Note that I think the Australia litter survey could be made a broader and perfect public space survey by adding a couple categories: gum and paint on the sidewalk; and graffiti. And going along, you can also check the condition of signage, sidewalks, and curbs.