Local communities are being urged to get 'smart' on tackling litter with the launch of a new Government Litter Innovation Fund.
Almost £500,000 will be awarded to community projects to tackle the blight of littering, Environment Minister Thérèse Coffey announced today.
The money will support the development of new approaches for tackling litter, from behavioural research for better positioned bins and recycling points so more people throw their rubbish away to digital technology. This includes apps and ‘smart-bins’ that can text alerts to rubbish collectors when they are full, stopping litter from spilling out or leading people to litter nearby.
Cleaning up the UK’s streets costs the tax payer almost £800 million a year but much of this is avoidable litter and the money could be better spent in the community.
Despite this, a worrying 1 in 5 people have admitted to dropping litter in the past.
The Litter Innovation Fund will support local areas to crack down and reduce littering in our communities by enabling local authorities, community groups, charities, educational institutions, and small and medium enterprises to apply for funding towards innovative and creative solutions to the problem.
Environment Minister Thérèse Coffey, said: “The Litter Innovation Fund offers a great opportunity for the most creative solutions to littering to receive funding and for us all to learn new ways of how to stop littering happening. 10% of the fund is entirely dedicated to preventing marine litter, a growing problem with global consequences for our precious marine environment. I encourage groups to get involved and showcase the wealth of options there are out there to tackle littering. Let’s help people make the right choices.”
Welcoming the fund’s launch, Keep Britain Tidy Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton, said: “Innovation is vital if we are to change the behaviour of the minority of people who still think it is OK to drop their rubbish on the ground for someone else to pick up. All projects will be measured and evaluated to assess their effectiveness and the most successful could be rolled out more widely.”
Information for applicants to the Litter Innovation Fund can be found at wrap.org.uk
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