When it comes to keeping our city clean, Wichitans can do better.
That鈥檚 according to a litter study conducted by 黑洞社区鈥檚 Environment Finance Center, which surveyed a dozen parks within the city limits during the summer of 2021.
The Wichita Litter Study was borne from community concern about the number of single-use plastic bags floating throughout the city. The study focused on 12 small sites within Wichita municipal parks 鈥� two parks within each city council district; and the data, while concerning, was not altogether a surprise for the research team.
鈥淲ichita is a unique place, but our litter certainly is not unique,鈥� said Michelle DeHaven, program manager at the EFC. 鈥淲hen we compare it to other litter studies, our study showed that Wichita鈥檚 litter is similar to what communities are experiencing across the country.鈥�
In total, study volunteers collected two dozen 5-quart buckets filled with small, unmeasurable items with an average of two buckets per collection event. Additionally, volunteers picked up 1,765 individual pieces of trash that were 4 inches or larger. Of the litter collected, 47% of it was single-use plastic.
The plastic problem
The biggest litter bugs: single-use plastic and cigarette butts.
鈥淲hen you research, most of the things that other studies find are plastic, and so was ours. Almost half of what we found were single-use plastics,鈥� DeHaven said.
Single-use plastics, as the name implies, are disposable items that are thrown away after using one time. For example, water bottles, potato chip bags and candy wrappers are all single-use plastics.
鈥淭he majority of the plastic that we found was food and beverage containers 鈥� water bottles, Gatorade-type drinks, soda bottles, alcohol bottles, chip bags and wrappers that come off convenience foods at gas stations,鈥� DeHaven said. 鈥淎 second runner up was cigarette butts. We found cigarette butts all over the place.鈥�
DeHaven said that many smokers have the misconception that cigarette butts are biodegradable or made from paper, so they throw them on the ground.
鈥淐igarette butts are made of plastic,鈥� she said. 鈥淎 lot of people think it鈥檚 just paper and it鈥檒l degrade, but it鈥檚 not paper. It鈥檚 plastic that contains toxic compounds. So not only does the plastic last a long time, but it鈥檒l leech those chemicals into the ground.鈥�
DeHaven said that while some of the litter can be attributed to Kansas鈥� high winds blowing trash, much of the problem could be remedied with behavioral changes.
鈥淚n a couple parks where there were pavilions or picnic areas, there was trash on the ground in front of the trash can even when the trash can was not full,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here are definitely some behavioral modifications that could help limit the litter in Wichita.鈥�
What can we do?
Moving forward, the Wichita Litter Study states that 鈥淓fforts to prevent and mitigate litter in our community can range from simple, low-cost approaches to broader investments in prevention campaigns and capital to keep litter from ending up on the ground, then entering our rivers and streams,鈥� the report reads. 鈥淓veryone in the community has a role to play in reducing litter.鈥�
鈥淭here are things that the city of Wichita can do on a municipal level, such as looking at placement of trash cans, making sure there are adequate trash cans where people congregate, and investing in recycling and the messaging to go along with it,鈥� DeHaven said.
Additionally, there are actions that everyone can take such as making sure that we all are properly disposing of our trash. Recommendations from the report include the following:
- Community engagement around civic pride and keeping Wichita beautiful.
- Wichita should invest in more trash and recycle bins, while educating the community about what can be recycled and what鈥檚 trash.
- Increase landscaping. Landscaped areas attract less littering.
- Increase instructional signage or prompts to promote positive behavior.
- Reach out to area businesses 鈥� such as restaurants or gas stations, where much of the litter originates 鈥� to brainstorm solutions to reduce the amount of litter produced by their products.
Think globally
鈥淧ick up your trash. Pick up trash if you see it on the ground, and pick up after your dogs,鈥� DeHaven said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e part of an entire system that鈥檚 trying to keep our planet clean. When I think about all the trash that ends up in our ocean, it comes from here, too.鈥�
DeHaven said that some people might not think Wichita鈥檚 trash can affect the global trash problem, but that鈥檚 simply not true.
鈥淭he trash that鈥檚 in our river will flow into the river or the storm drains, and that leads down to the Mississippi River, to the Gulf of Mexico and right to the ocean,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f you look at the trash in the north Pacific, you will find trash from Wichita there because our waterways are all connected.鈥�
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