This week, Wealden MP Nus Ghani has joined Uckfield resident Abi Walsh in calling for more care and protection for our environment and green spaces.
Abi, aged 9, who goes to school in Nutley, wrote to Nus outlining her concerns at the amount of litter on grass verges in Uckfield. To get her point across, Abi drew a wonderful and creative poster reminding people not to be a ‘litter lout’, and of their responsibilities in keeping our environment clean.
Litter affects us all, disrupting the beauty of our local environment in Wealden and costing £1,112,000 locally to clean-up. Litter can also cause serious harm to our vibrant and diverse wildlife in Wealden.
Last year, Nus supported the “Clean for the Queen” campaign, and joined Crowborough based volunteer group “Brighter Crowborough” in a litter pick, seeing first-hand the extent of littering and the damage it can do.
New penalties for littering mean that the maximum on-the-spot fine is almost doubled from £80 to £150. Across the country, littering costs £800 million to clean up.
Commenting on the call, Ms Ghani said: “Littering can ruin the beautiful environment in Wealden. We should all take pride in the wonderful green spaces we are lucky to have around us, and make sure to do our bit by putting litter in the bin and picking up rubbish when we see it.
I know that everyone in Wealden cares a great deal about our environment, and so it’s great to see that from such a young age people like Abi are taking the initiative and reminding people of their responsibilities.
We can all do our bit to protect our environment, and I will continue to campaign against littering so that our children inherit a healthy and clean Wealden.”
