Biggest Offenders

Today I walked the back road and picked up trash. Mostly it was beer cans. A few soda cans, a few plastics, one glass beer bottle, but beer cans by far dominated the road trash.

This gravel road is only maintained because it leads up to an old cemetery. There are a few stray houses back here, and then 4 miles more is just switchbacks up to this ancient burial ground. Some crews were cutting blow downs, another mowing, still another hauling gravel to keep it drivable.

Every once in awhile you'll see a hunter back in there. A campsite seldom used is near the creek.
A person's got to wonder about all these beer cans. Seems like it would be easy enough to throw the empties back in the truck and take them home.
A friend suggested that if caught, an open container would bring a fine or worse. For this reason the beer drinkers ditch the can once its open.

There's got to be an answer. Maybe like a "sharps" container or "hazardous waste" container we have at hospitals. Once empty, the beer can gets put in a container that meets the law. A person would be allowed to have unopened alcoholic beverages in the vehicle, or empties in the safety zone. This is way too complicated.
What matters to me is if people are driving drunk and/or littering. Having empties in the vehicle doesn't mean a person is drunk. Not having empties doesn't mean they are sober.
Just smash the thing, put it in an empty Walmart bag and take it home. Add it to the recycling efforts.

Seriously, for those of us who live back in the boonies, we appreciate it very much if people don't throw their empties in our yard.

A big thanks to everyone who helps keep our road ways clean by recycling. Also, to those clubs and groups which adopt sections of road sincere appreciation.