Litter Facts
Litter, litter, everywhere! We see litter on our streets, playgrounds and parks everyday. Some litter lasts a few weeks and some litter can hang out for over 1 million years.
Look at the lifespan of some commonly littered items:
| Item | Decomposition Time |
| Glass bottle | unknown |
| Aluminum can | 200-500 years |
| Tin Can | 80-100 years |
| Rubber boot sole | 50-80 years |
| Leather | up to 50 years |
| Nylon fabric | 30-40 years |
| Plastic film container | 20-30 years |
| Painted wooden stake | 13 years |
| Plastic bag | 10-20 years |
| Plastic coated paper | 5 years |
| Wool clothing | 1-5 years |
| Cigarette butt | 1-5 years |
| Cotton rag | 1-5 months |
| Orange peel or banana peel | 2-5 weeks |
Source: California Waste Management Bulletin
Cigarette butts are one of the most littered items!
Adopt-A-Highway – Volunteers remove litter from California’s Highways.
Storm Water Pollution & Litter – Our storm drains don’t just empty water into our oceans and rivers, litter goes there too.
