Festivals at parks means more people and more litte

It's the start of festival time at parks and time to have plenty of strategies and park trash cans ready for the crowds and the litter bugs.

Spring is here and the season for outdoor festivals, fun times, great music…and alas, tons of trash. Park officials would be wise to have plenty of park trash cans on hand because for some reason, when it comes to crowds, common sense is usually the first thing that gets thrown out.

Take the impromptu 4:20 festival that is held every year at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. The event is held on "Hippie Hill" on April 20 and celebrates the smoking of a certain illegal substance.

Tens of thousands of people gather there every year to celebrate. But in their celebrating, many of them seem to totally forget the environmental movement of the sixties and continually trash the place. The grass is literally deluged with tons of discarded cups, bottles, papers, bags and assorted other items. Their mess is legendary and continues to be frustrating for park employees

Ironically, this 4:20 event takes place two days before Earth Day. Not too many hippies would appreciate that.

Sir Paul McCartney once gave a free concert for the Piedmont Park Conservancy in Atlanta. Guess what, people enjoyed the show…and then trashed the park. Perhaps he should have closed the show with, "Help, I Need Somebody…To Throw Their Rubbish In The Trash Bins."

It gets so bad at some parks that people cringe at the thought of showing up on Mondays after a weekend of binge-littering by irresponsible park-goers.

What to do?

The placement of park trash cans

First thing, get more park garbage cans on the premises. That seems to generally be the No. 1 complaint by participants. They would toss their trash in the bins if they were accessible.

Outdoor park trash can

You have to have faith in mankind and believe that most people would actually dump their trash in a park trash can given the opportunity.

The problem with festivals is that there are some additional challenges to consider. First, there is a large number of people who have an opportunity to produce an enormous amount of trash.

So, there needs to be plenty of extra park trash cans placed in the area. Not just along the walkways, but in the middle of the crowds. Research shows, the further away outdoor trash receptacles are from people, the more likely they are to litter. Even the most eco-minded person.

To accommodate points where people gather, use lightweight aluminum trash cans that can be moved and positioned strategically in popular areas and then removed later.

Secondly, nowadays people seem to carry and buy a lot of stuff. Huge coolers. Big picnic baskets. Backpacks full of food. Heck, there are even packs you can buy that when opened, resemble a small wine cellar complete with cutting boards and glass holders.

So not only do the park trash cans need to be nearby, but there needs to be plenty of them. They will fill quickly. Once they are filled, they will overflow because people will start discarding trash around them. Studies also show, litter begets litter. When the trash hits the ground, it's like a green light for others to do the same, even citizens who would generally be responsible in other situations.

The third factor is the number of people. It's not easy to get around in a crowd. That makes it difficult for responsible people to reach those commercial trash cans. That's why it's key to have plenty of them scattered about all parts of the park.

Keep America Beautiful has some additional tips for event organizers:

- For any event, right up front, promote the fact that this event is "waste-wise" and is meant to be "litter-free." There are plenty of other items for organizers to worry about, but be sure to place "stop littering" on the agenda as well and be sure all workers and volunteers are aware of this effort.

- Place plenty of signage at the entrance to the event and at other key, highly-visible areas. Heck, you might even post signs that read "Help Us Keep This Event Going Every Year By Keeping This Event Litter-Free." Place the signs right on the park trash cans. Seems ridiculous, doesn't it? But advertising does work and it does get people to focus on what you want them to do.

- Instruct park and event personnel to politely show people the location of the nearest outdoor trash receptacles so they can throw their garbage away properly. Ask people on stage to make a quick public service announcement before and after the show.

- KAB also recommends using larger trash receptacles and recycling receptacles and positioning them near food venues. If larger receptacles aren't available, then place plenty of them. Find a way to have some personnel available to empty those trash containers that fill quickly.

- Hand out litter bags and portable or pocket ashtrays if the number of people is going to far exceed the capacity of trash receptacles and outdoor ashtrays that are available. That will help.

For anyone in the park or event business, littering seems to be one of those great paradoxes that just doesn't make sense. People go to parks to enjoy the outdoors and the environment. So why on earth would they trash it? But they do.

Most people wouldn't litter, given a choice. Give them that chance to do the right thing by providing plenty of large park trash cans and gentle reminders that just like their moms, Mother Nature (in the form of event organizers) is telling them the garbage goes in the garbage cans…and not on the ground.

To read tips from Keep America Beautiful on how to prevent littering, click here.