In our stretch from Mobus Road in Waitsfield to Cider Hill Road in
Warren we have actually given each year's theme a name: 2005 was the
year of the granola bar; 2006 was dedicated to Vermont craft beers; and
then in 2007 we saw a big swing in beverage choices as the litterbugs
showed a preference for wines that came in bottles of all shapes and
sizes, but the little airplane sizes seemed most popular. It was clear
that the economy was on a downturn last year in 2008 when we noticed a
lot fewer wine and microbeer bottles and a lot more Budweiser cans --
the big 24-ounce size.
We declare 2009 the year of the potato chip and Green Mountain coffee.
While we came across a fair share of beer cans and bottles, litterbugs
this year demonstrated a preference for Twisted Tea, Seagram's Ice and
Pepsi.
Every year there is something that we run across that we have to think
twice about before we pick it up; for example, a used condom. This
year's questionable item was a fully used baby diaper that had been
sitting in the ditch so it was water logged and starting to shred. Yuk!
A little further down the road we found the remnants of a complete
McDonald's meal that I suspect was purchased in Randolph, devoured by
East Granville and then held onto by the litterbug until he or she
decided it was time get rid of it right across the street from Billy
Brauer's studio.
We also give a fictitious prize to the person who deposited the most
contradictory litter of the year. The 2009 prize goes to the person who
threw out the EnviroKidz Organic Crispy Rice Bar wrapper. According to
the label it contains "Nothing artificial! No additives!" And, 2
percent of their sales "go to wildlife." Now there is a parent who
cares about the health of the earth for the EnviroKidz generation.
Green Up Vermont Day is one of those things that is fun to do and makes
you feel good, but there is also a certain measure of sadness that
comes with the task of picking up other people's trash. First, it is
sad that a person today would actually think it is OK to open up the
window of the car and throw out an empty coffee cup or snack food
wrapper. It is also sad though to think of the energy and precious oil
that went into producing the wrappers, plastic containers and bottles
only for them to end up strewn along the roadside. This is something to
think about when purchasing food products; is there another way to
purchase a product so that it doesn't require so much packaging that
will eventually become trash? Perhaps you can buy more from the bulk
bins, purchase soda in larger-sized containers, use thermal commuter
coffee mugs or buy food from local farmers who don't need to use as
much packaging because their products don't have to withstand a harsh
shipping environment.
Still, it is fun to make a game of trying to understand the patterns in
litterbugging from year to year. Just as we got near the end of our
route, we picked up a piece of trash that held the answer to why we saw
so few cigarette packages and cigarette butts this year. It was an
empty package of Nicorette gum!
McDermott lives in Waitsfield.
