Bill wages war on litter louts (From Dorset Echo)

Bill wages war on litter louts

LITTER is becoming the "default condition" of the countryside, author Bill Bryson warned today as he launched a campaign against the problem.

MISSION: Bill Bryson on a visit to West Parley

The Campaign to Protect Rural England's (CPRE) Stop the Drop drive is demanding stronger action from Government and local authorities to tackle litter and fly-tipping.

CPRE is also calling for a new law which would pay people to recycle their plastic bottles.

According to the conservation charity, of which Mr Bryson is the president, an estimated 25 million tonnes of litter is dropped each year and the problem is five times worse than in the 1960s.

Mr Bryson - who used to live in Burton and work at the Daily Echo - said: "Litter is becoming the default condition of the countryside. It is time that we - all of us - did something about it. The landscape is too lovely to trash."