Throwing cigarette out of your window might put you in a big trouble.
A man in the UK was fined a almost $2,500 (£2000) for throwing a cigarette out of his window.
Gary Jones, 30 ignored the initial $100 (£80) fine which was given to him by Plymouth’s ‘litter cops.’ It was then escalated to the City magistrates, who increased it to around $370 (£300).
After skipping two court hearing, he was ordered to pay around $2,030(£1,665) in court costs. Plymouth City Council said that it will give a strong message that any kind of littering will not be ignored.
Plymouth city councillor Sally Haydon told PlymouthLive: “Littering is an ongoing problem in Plymouth and we want people to realize that this sort of behavior is not acceptable.”
“People should not be throwing cigarettes and food wrappers from their cars.”
“I hope today’s fine sends out a strong message that we simply will not tolerate this sort of selfish behavior and we will not hesitate to take tough action.”
Rubbish Walks is a UK based scheme to pick up cigarette left by people on the floor. This week, 150,000 were counted in Ipswich.
Its Facebook description reads: “A social enterprise created by Jason Alexander, aka @wildlifegadgetman highlighting the issues of single-use plastics, litter and waste.”
The group posted: “This is the Mountain Of Shame from here in the U.K. to show support and solidarity for my friend Miquel Garau Ginard and his #MountainOfShame campaign to highlight the global issue of discarded cigarette butts polluting our streets, rivers and oceans.”
“Everyone a little ticking time bomb of plastic and toxic chemicals.”
“A massive well done to Miquel for all his hard work and to all the volunteers around the world showing their support too.”