November 7th, 2008 1:07pm
Prompted by the obscene amount of cigarette butts found on the streets on Miami Beach, Commissioner Jerry Libbin is personally taking action. He is considering instituting a plan that includes educating the public on the harms of littering and implementing a system of fines ranging from $50 to $500, which will hopefully shock the public into awareness. Although such an extreme measure would be highly unlikely, Libbin also warns of a possible smoking ban (this is where you either shriek for joy or thrust a nervous hand into your pocket/purse to make sure your cigarettes are still there) if Miami smokers don't clean up their act. Of course, a non-smoking ban would be difficult to enforce and, needless to say, wouldn't sit well with resident smokers. A more likely plan would be to designate areas where smoking will be prohibited called Green Zones (but even that is only in the idea-stage). Either way, it is clear that something will thankfully be done to help clean up Miami Beach.
Meetings have already been held over the past couple of weeks, bringing together a small number of environmentally-conscious Miami Beach residents and organizations. The most notable of these groups is the Environmental Commission of Miami Beach, or ECOMB, a not-for-profit volunteer-based corporation dedicated to educating Miami-Dade County's residents and visitors to adopt responsible environmental behaviors and raise awareness about our surrounding ecosystems. As for the anti-littering awareness events taking place this weekend and next, volunteers will be used to monitor a section of the beach, distributing biodegradable trash bags, and the slogan, Please don't leave with just a suntan, Take your trash. While the streets of Miami Beach may be never be spotless (cig-less?), there are people and organizations out there already working hard to improve our beloved city.
