To all local yokels in the County of Parkland, I say, "Let's rid our streets of litter!" And, while I'm on the subject of unsightly messes, let's keep the dog poop out of our parks, too!

About the problem of litter, this is not a city problem or a county problem, this is our problem! I live in the downtown core, where litter can be an eyesore. I do my best to remove it from my property - - and sometimes from my neighbor's yards. But, obviously, this is only a small area of Spruce Grove.

Recently there has been talk in Edmonton about giving people warnings about dropping cigarette butts on city streets (before imposing fines). Hmmm. Well, piles of cigarette butts are definitely not a pretty sight. But, I live close to schools and businesses, where there are all types of litter - - not just cigarette butts! Candy wrappers. Slushie cups. Hamburger wrappers. Yikes!

A step in the right direction has been for the city to add extra garbage cans in some areas of the city. I think this has helped keep some of the trash off the city sidewalks and streets. But, there is so much more that we could all do to beautify our neighborhoods - - one person at a time. Local organizations have received extra funds from the city for cleaning some of the city's accumulated litter. This not only benefits the city, but helps these hardworking organizations, too. So, while I think the City of Spruce Grove, in particular, has had some good ideas in this regard, the city programs obviously can't take care of the entire problem.

Let's work together to ease our litter problem. After all, everyone wants healthy and attractive places to live. Right?