Editing Litter (section)

{{Short description|Waste products disposed of incorrectly at an inappropriate location}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Pollution sidebar|Solid waste|image=[[File:Littering in Stockholm.jpg|frameless]]|caption=Litter in [[Stockholm]], Sweden}}

[[File:Paronamic - Littering.jpg|thumb|Littering in [[Monterrey|Monterrey, Mexico]] ]]
'''Litter''' consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. The waste is objects, often man-made, such as [[aluminum cans]], [[paper cups]], food wrappers, [[cardboard boxes]] or [[plastic bottles]], but also large and hazardous items of rubbish such as tires, electrical appliances, electronics, batteries and large industrial containers are sometimes dumped in isolated locations, such as national forests and other public lands.

Litter is a type of [[human impact on the environment]] and is a serious environmental problem in many countries. Litter can exist in the environment for long periods of time before [[decomposition]] and be transported over large distances into the world's oceans. Litter can negatively affect quality of life.

[[Cigarette#Cigarette butt|Cigarette butt]]s are the most littered item in the world, with an estimated 4.5 trillion discarded each year.<ref>Novotny, T.E. & Zhao, F. (1999). Consumption and production waste: another externality of tobacco use. Tobacco Control, 8, 75-80.</ref> Estimates of the required time for cigarette butts to break down vary, ranging from 5 to 400 years for complete degradation.<ref name="Littering Information">{{cite web |url=http://www.blacktown.nsw.gov.au/environment/issues/littering/littering-information.cfm |title=Littering Information |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006152103/http://www.blacktown.nsw.gov.au/environment/issues/littering/littering-information.cfm |archive-date=October 6, 2012 |access-date=2013-02-03}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Umweltthemen Zigaretten |url= http://naturschutzbund.at/umweltthemen/articles/zigaretten.html |access-date=2020-01-23|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160512023845/https://naturschutzbund.at/umweltthemen/articles/zigaretten.html |archive-date= 2016-05-12 }}</ref>