Law Enforcement officers in Decatur County went "back to school" on Thursday for updated training on policies and code enforcement for littering in the State of Georgia. For the better part of the day, officers and officials from state, county and local levels are getting updated and better prepared to handle the ever growing increase of litter in our area.

"Litter" is defined by the state as: Misplaced, abandoned, or discarded waste.

Georgia market research has shown that the most likely person to litter, regardless of race, income and education level is a male between the ages of 18-25. The Georgia Dept. of Transportation annually removes litter from 1,245 Interstate miles, 18,000 route miles, with cities and counties being responsible for 96,818 miles of local roads or 84% of the total roads in the state.

In 2006 alone, the Dept. of Transportation for the State of Georgia spent 14 million in picking up litter on state highways.....this does not include local, non profit and corporate cleanup efforts. Litter prevention is more than cleanup activities, but with 8 out of 10 Georgians feeling that someone else will pick up the trash thrown out of a vehicle (Dept. of Transportation study), help to rid the highways of trash seems slow at best.

Georgia litter laws can be substantial from fines to terms of imprisonment, sometimes with both.(see pictures below). Laws are also enforced on both private and public owned properties, meaning the days of burying the house trash or throwing into someone else's fields can bring healthy penalties, or jail time.

The State of Georgia is "stepping up" on controlling the problems with highway trash not only in citizen awareness and prevention, but with enforcement as well, as the Litter Enforcement Training Workshop held in Bainbridge will give Law Enforcement better insight and updates on codes and penalties.