Past EarthDay ‘20: BALTIMORE a top "U.S.A. Litter Polluted City"

by STEVE SPACEK litterscorecard.com

TWITTER @litterscorecard

MAY 8, 2020 – Baltimore is among 15 Big, Litter Polluted Cities in America, where littering and dumping of virus-breeding waste is visible, widespread. This infomation comes during a massive coronavirus outbreak that has killed dozens within this Centers for Disease Control-noted "hotbed," said Steve Spacek, a public performance specialist that directs the American States Litter Scorecard.

Baltimore is among five CDC case "hotbeds" (New Orleans, Miami, Detroit and New York City the others) that made the "most litter abused communities" list, determined by the Scorecard using "hard" indicator data representing incorporated metropolises with a 375,000 or more total population, Spacek said.

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency and revered health science journals, solid wastes are able to breed and transmit fatal viruses and diseases--Tetanus, Hepatitis A, Malaria, Zika, even Covid-19, said Spacek. As wastes, littered cigarette filters, paper food packaging, plastic beverage containers and retail -issued bags can be later consumed by animals and seafood for humans to sell, buy, eat.

Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration indicates over 800 persons have died each year since 2010-- roughly 3 Americans killed per day-- from vehicular-majority encounters with un-removed waste and related debris upon roads, sidewalks, trails, parks and waterways (especially the Harbor area). In 2017, at least 17 Marylanders were killed statewide in these incidents that can occur anytime and under all types of weather, Spacek said.

Since the first Earth Day in 1970, five decades of Gallup polls find "a majority of Americans have great concern for pollution and its management by government," said Spacek. "Baltimore City has become a big-time public hygiene and safety failure to citizens. Filthy public spaces were not cleaned. There's insufficient support to reuse and recycle thrown-away items. Sadly, as a highly-littered, virus-hotbed community, the 'Charm City" appears to be paying a less-than-charming price for not duly practicing Green virtues: avoidable deaths."