Littering in public places shows lack of civic sense
Follow basic habits to keep your surroundings clean at parks and beaches
Plastic cups and cutlery litter a table next to a barbecue station, food is still left over on plastic plates and soda cans are visible in the bushes. Cats and crows are the only ones left behind to witness the remains of a feast.
They and Sharjah resident Adrian Anand.
“It doesn’t take a lot of effort to clean up after a barbecue, you know,” the 28-year-old mechanical engineer said.
“Even if it does, cleaning up should just come naturally.”
Unfortunately, for many UAE residents it doesn’t. As someone who enjoys barbecues, Anand said he had seen a clear lack of civic sense among people who use the park and beach facilities provided to residents.
“People do not follow basic etiquette. I think it is slightly better in public parks because they are afraid of being fined. Even at the Sharjah Taawun beach strip there are designated areas for people to dispose of their trash, but they don’t use those and leave litter on the rocks or on the beach.”
Abu Dhabi announced that it would introduce seven new public parks at a cost of Dh34 million. Dubai, Sharjah and other emirates have also built new facilities with the municipalities working around the clock to maintain them.
However, through several community reports over the years, Gulf News readers have raised the issue of littering at these locations.
Barbecue enthusiasts fail to understand why basic rules of hygiene are not followed.
“The most basic step I take is that if there is hot coal left over, I dig up a ditch in the sand, cover the hot coal with cold sand and then pour water over it. I also put a marking around it to warn other users, because it can be dangerous,” Azeem Shah, a 29-year-old strategy consultant, said.
The key, according to Gulf News readers, would be awareness campaigns on civic responsibilities and fines penalising littering.
In March Abu Dhabi Municipality spoke to Gulf News about increased measures to ensure public facilities are kept clean.
In 2014 the municipality issued 7,417 fines for littering, which can cost an errant visitor Dh500, and is expected to be increased to Dh1,000.
The writer is a trainee with the Readers Desk at Gulf News.