Who Gives a Hoot?

Remember the giant owl named Woodsy that used to sing "Give a Hoot, Don't pollute"?

Woodsy Owl Circa 1970-80

Well, many of you folks that were kids in the 70's and 80's apparently didn't take it to heart. I have seen a lot of people pollute and they are of all ages, but what I saw yesterday can be attributed to many that were alive during the "Give a Hoot, Don't Pollute" Campaign of the 70's & 80's. 

Iron Eyes Cody

There was another member of the campaign you may recognize if you are at least 40 and that is of the crying Native-American. His name was Iron Eyes Cody and his tears are what grabbed you in the end. According to the Keep America Beautiful Web site, more than 90% of litter is placed on the roadways by motorists and pedestrians.  Also according to KAB, littering has decreased by about 61% since the 70's, but they also state that there are 6,729 litter items per mile on our nation's highways, and that includes cigarette butts, fast food containers, drink containers, etc.

A group of us picked up trash this weekend on a 3 mile stretch of highway that has been adopted by the members of the AC Weikle Memorial Poker Run in memory of AC Weikle. We found some interesting things that "somehow" made their way from someones hand to the side of the road.

• 40oz beer bottles/cans (about 90 or more)
• Empty cigarette/snuff containers (about 55-60)
• snack wrappers (i.e. Little Debbie, potato chips, Slim Jim, & Ice Cream bars)
• Fast food containers (french fry boxes, burger boxes, soft drink cups)
• Some old mail ( MR. GXXXXX, We found your credit card statement, full CC number included. You may want to invest in a shredder.)
• Pregnancy test (used)
• Carton and wrapper to pregnancy test
• Disposable Diapers (used of course)
• A $1 bill (I kept that of course)

On a previous clean up I found a box with drug paraphernalia in it. Do you really want a kid to find that?

Sunday, April 22nd, 2012 is Earth Day. Plan to do something in your community that will help the earth and show how much you respect what you have that you did not earn. Learn more at the Earth Day 2012 Web site

Below are the links to the You Tube videos of Woodsy the owl and Iron Eyes Cody.
Woodsy the Owl
Iron Eyes Keep America Beautiful

What can you do? Well, for starters you can stop throwing litter out of your vehicle windows. Put a small trash receptacle in your vehicle. As big as all those SUV's and Vans are you can't tell me there is no room. Don't use your truck bed as a trash can; all the trash blows out when you're going down the highway. You can make sure any roadway that are near your property are cleaned regularly, whether you put the trash there or not. It is not "someone else's" job! It's your job, my job, and our job! You should be one who "Gives a Hoot"!