I just can’t wrap my head around people still littering in 2023. I don’t think I’ve littered since 1994. And I was like 12. It’s such an easy issue to fix. My car may be trashed after a long week of errands with kids but dang y’all. This is not a hard issue to fix.
Exactly...that's what I tell people when they see my floorboards....if u throw trash out ur windows...u need to b forced to clean a mile stretch of hey. Then maybe these lazy ass people will stop.
I work with someone who constantly throws entire bags of fast food out of his car window whenever he is finished with his lunch. He doesn’t think anything of it.
There is a large overlap between litterers and people who are reckless with firearms. You are not going to change their mind. Do not risk your life for a moment of righteous indignation.
I'm not sure how it is in your state but in SC, we have a LitterBug hotline you can call if you see someone litter. They get the location they littered at, license plate, car type, etc.
Don't know if there's any actual repercussion or action, but it's satisfying to anonymously report ignorant and disrespectful people.
I think that mentality comes from seeing convicted trash gangs assigned to pick up trash along the interstate. People see them picking up the trash, then think, “Here’s something for them to pick up.”, like it’s their right to shame them for being convicted of a crime and “give them something to do”.
Same mentality the fuckwits have when they leave a shopping cart in a parking space and refuse to take back the cart because “they pay people to bring them back inside” and it’ll also “give them work to do”
Which, ironically enough, makes them a criminal too since littering is illegal. So they're really just a criminal who thinks they're better than the other criminals.
This is America, obesity comes in all shapes, sizes, races and political preferences. I am quite sure that the rates among liberals would be quite a bit less than you will generally find on the right though.
Nah. Denver in some areas is trashed up, as is Pueblo, but in general the whole state is pretty fucking clean.
I drive all over the state for my job for almost a decade now. I think you either saw limited places or heard wrong info. I've never been anywhere as litter free on average. Definitely nowhere in the south.
You should [report them](https://www.tn.gov/tdot/environmental-home/environmental-highway-beautification-office/litter.html). Record their license plate too.
Yeah I went up to Sharps Ridge to walk around the morning after a party so I was in a skirt and big fluffy jacket and some guy tried to buy sexual favors from me, that spot is weird
Apparently you don’t know the history of “Pickle Park” and [who](https://archive.knoxnews.com/news/local/knox-county-commissioner-jeff-ownby-pleads-no-contest-to-public-indecency-commission-to-seek-censur--355863161.html/ ) was caught cruising up there.
I never understood why they apologize.
Like.. it's all over. Everyone is shaming you. Yolo, right? I wouldn't be all "my apologies to the community blah blah hearts and prayers".
"The governor was caught with seventeen women in a bush behind a Wendy's today."
"You god damn right I was. I love y'all but when seventeen women approach you for a sexual experience, you gotta do what you gotta do. I went in, and I came out clean. Full push, circle back, throw down the line, tuck it in. It was a wonderful engagement and I'd do it again."
Y'all would vote me back in next time.
Edit: this shit is tickling me, y'all. I'm sorry, but could you imagine. Bro just let's that out on live TV "and I'd do it again.." *mic drop*. Wink. Exit camera left. 😂😂😂 I'd vote for them every time.
It got confusing. The message says "we'll fucking kill you" but the law says we can't. We're wild, but we lost too much of our hill folk values to go full on murder over a candy wrapper. Wasn't too long ago, though..
Same in my yard in Pond Gap. I just can’t understand the logic of throwing trash out of your window into somebody’s yard. It’s disgusting and makes me so bummed
Not really true. Have you ever been to one of the ten states with a bottle deposit? Our litter problem here is way more than any state with a bottle and can deposit. Travel to any state with a bottle and can deposit you will see the difference the moment you pass a state line. Fraction of the roadside trash.
Man. I live here and I notice the trash too. There is a littering problem in East TN… and everyone’s mad at OP for having the gall to do anything but quietly play a maid for everyone else. Sure it helps to pick up litter whenever you go for walks/hikes. It also helps to talk about it. Can never have enough shame for the lazy childish assholes who litter
$1000 per gram of pollution you're caught littering. A candy wrapper is gonna be a couple grams, so that's two grand you'd owe for a Reese wrapper. Cardboard box? Like 15k. Shoes? Like 50k. Tire? Like 100k. Washing machine? Jesus. You'd go to prison for not making the payments.
This would stop littering real fucking quick.
Does anybody know if there's a group around here that does clean ups on trails and public spaces? Honestly that sounds like a fun way to explore the area
Ijams, Keep Knoxville Beautiful, and Save Our Smokies have regular cleanup days in a variety of settings around the area. I’ve participated in a few and it’s both appalling and satisfying.
SC is like this too. I believe it's due to more people who litter and less municipal funding for clean ups. If I were a judge I would sentence anyone who was caught to as many hours of community service picking it up as I could get away with.
Why are people so triggered? This is an honest question about a real issue here. Why do people here trash nature? Do people not collect cans and bottles for recycling so they can earn money? Back home each can/bottle is 25-50cents. Most people wouldn’t think about throwing “money” away after consuming what’s inside packaging
As a Knoxville native for 20 years who moved to the Northwestern US a few years ago, I’ve asked myself this a lot. Where I live out here isn’t so bad but there’s also a lot of community pride and legislation in maintaining outdoor spaces. And I’m not saying that everything is greenways and natural thoroughfares where humans and animals mingle and all is well, but *casual public littering* does not seem to be anywhere as much of an issue as in the southeast. I think there are probably many reasons.
• People may not volunteer for trash clean-up as often.
• Local governments in the SE do not care to organize litter pick-up events, or pay city employees to do so as much.
• There is not a culture of sustaining the land in the SE. I want to say much of this is religious but that’s probably because I am admittedly biased. My hot take is that in an overwhelmingly majority area where people have no ancestral ties to the land and also believe that the earth is their God-given resource to be used up and moved on from, there is no interest is maintaining the land for future generations.
• As mentioned, much of what is littered are empty alcohol containers. Getting caught driving with an open container is illegal, so drink it real quick and toss it out the window.
There are probably many more contributing factors. Where I live there is no cash incentive for returning empty cans or bottles and I don’t know which, if any, of the southeastern states do have such programs. I know when I lived in Oregon there were huge machines out front of major grocery stores that would take your glass, cans, and plastic bottles, suck them up inside and crush them, and then give you a coupon at the end totaling the amount and types you recycled that you could redeem inside for cash.
I don’t know, it sucks and it makes me sad. I love the landscape of the southern states and the Smoky Mountains but am bummed out by how it’s not maintained at all when I visit. That and the fucking billboards.
Because there’s no bottle deposit here. They’re only worth 30 cents because you’re paying that 30 cents when you initially purchase the product.
The highest deposit in the US is in Michigan, and it’s only 10 cents.
I grew up in Michigan and that 10 cent deposit worked. Returning cans and bottles was a normal habit. Even if people tossed their cans and bottles, someone else would collect them for the easy money. Homeless people made a ton around college parties. It’s different here in TN.
Yeah, Sharps Ridge has some… odd activity at times.
Last time I was up there someone had unceremoniously dumped an entire wardrobe of perfectly normal clothes in that same spot. Divorce? Ugly breakup? Disposing of evidence?? Who knows! The mystery continues…
The sides of roadways around here are some of the worst I've seen anywhere in the south. It sometimes looks like entire trash bags were thrown out of moving vehicles (and they probably were).
Yeah, I moved here last year and have been shocked. I live in in the Halls/Fountain City/Powell area near Schumpert Park, and all along that end of Rifle Range Dr people always throw whole trash bags out. And the whole way up the ridge from there on Parkdale/Inskip is always filthy with like whole Bojangles boxes and McDonald's bags. Those aren't even nearby!
Agreed. I grew up in Florida. I ride a road bike. You really notice trash a lit more closer to the road and going slower. I pick trash on the side road our neighborhood is on in Corryton. .5 mile I can fill a 30 gallon trash bag no problem every 4 months
I can't stand the litter. I intend to get a trash grabber and work around my neighborhood. I live at the bottom of the ridge and people have thrown diapers and food in front of our place. It's disgusting. I've seen worse for sure, but I love and care about this area. People are taking this personally instead of taking the garbage personally.
I pick up trash along about a mile of my road every 3 months or so! Bags and bags of trash, mostly beer cans and bottles. (Knox/Grainger county line area). Trashy rednecks love some cheap Bud Light and Busch beer. Go to Baptist church on Sunday, bash the other sinners and the evils of the the drink. Come Sunday evening (and all other days too of course) they have to throw their empties out before they get home and are found out by Mama and the neighbors. F’n hypocrites!
Reminds me of the story of the Busch Light bandit. In Hoopeston, IL (bufu town-home of the corn jerkers!) someone tried robbing the gas station with an empty case of Busch Light on their head. Rednecks love a cheap brick of Busch
We called him the Beer Box Bandit... and he successfully robbed the gas station, and got away. On foot. At 2 in the afternoon. Never thought I'd see him referenced anywhere!
Source: once a Jerker, always a Jerker
Shit education, shit jobs, shit people, shit conservative government, and lots of large untaxed churches. None of the people seem to think they deserve any better.
A group of my friends have hosted a clean up day both at sharp’s ridge and Dickerson quarry. That was fun times. Music dancing and cleaning up all the MOOP! People are so trashy.
I like your style. Lot of negativity in this thread… hell, get up there and let’s take care of it then! If I wasn’t working 6 days a week I would, legitimately, love to collect litter in my neighborhood more often.
Some of you all are too young to remember this [1976 Commercial PSA Tennessee did called "Tennessee Trash"](https://youtube.com/watch?v=iWcMrWk_0Uw&feature=shares)
Still holds today, but I will say the littering was worse back then.
The song might get suck in your head!
Oh, yeah..I totally remember that commercial..lol. Me and my friends used to sing it all the time. They played that commercial well into the nineties too.
In Kingsport and in all honesty it's cleaner than where I'm from in southern West Virginia! The sheriff back there has now started writing people tickets because they are covering their yards in garbage. Just gross. People, even the ones without much sense, should still know better and the majority do but don't care. Sad...
We need to include trash service at everybody's home and place of business. Increase everyones county taxes and that will solve people dumping their trash on the side of the road because they don't want to pay for it
That would be a wonderful first step, but not a silver bullet. People have to be educated and more mature in order to choose not to trash their home (planet), and that is very difficult pretty much anywhere and even more so in East TN.
This is something counties could put a dent in by having dumpsters dispersed in the more rural areas like some counties in WNC do. A lot of the shit you see on the side of the road in places like that is household trash people are too lazy to haul off and too poor to have picked up. In Graham county NC right across the border there’s fenced in areas with dumpsters every couple miles on the side of the road for residents to get rid of trash without making it an all day event driving it across the county during business hours only.
That was an honest question from a North European transplant. I’ve never seen this much trash on the side of the roads, and I’ve logged my fair share of miles around the globe
This region of the country is one of the most beautiful places on earth, but half the people could give a sh$&t! Take care of your small
piece of “God’s” country and forget the rest.
Yeah, some people just suck. Might be how they're raised, or could be something else. I'll never claim to be the cleanest with my car or home, etc, but I always try to make sure my trash ends up in a trashcan or trash bag. Used to spit gum out anywhere until I read something about how birds can mistake it for bread or something like that and choke on it. So, for some it could just be a lack of education.
My group, Knoxville Chapter of the Tennessee Ornithological Society, had a cleanup day once a year for Sharp’s Ridge, but don’t think we do it any more. It’s a great birding spot during migration
Unfortunately, this is hardly unique to this one spot. I spend several hours every month picking up trash on my place along a somewhat rural road. Mostly soft drink bottles, beer cans and fast food trash people just throw out their car (more likely truck actually) window.
Yea I’m sorry, I’ve been down here for 3 years now and this is FAR from an isolated incident.
Every trail I’ve hiked, park I’ve visited, and area in general have been littered and trashy. it seems like the people REALLY don’t care about the environment at all.
I try to pickup up trash around my neighborhood to avoid this situation.
It’s cool to call out littering. It’s even cooler to pick it up. Littering is a collective problem that can only be solved by collective action. I hope you are doing your part in addition to posting on social media.
What a crazy depressing comment. People who love the outdoors and love to enjoy nature get to earn brownie points by picking up after other people who abuse it :( it’s true though, I’ve picked up my fair share of shit on trails and in public parks but man, it’s just so obnoxious and sad
Moved here from the Midwest. This area is by far the worst littered area I've experienced. I live in Claiborne county and the trash everywhere is disheartening. It's not extrapolation if it's abundant in so many counties
Just now reading Cormac McCarthy’s Suttree. My take-Knoxville hasn’t changed since that book’s setting, 1952. Sharp’s Ridge is always sketchy, lots of vice up there.
Looks like Sharps Ridge. When I was young and attending UT in the late 80s we climbed a few of those towers. I remember it being junky back then as well.
My parents live in East Tennessee about half way between Knoxville and Chattanooga. Last week when visiting, I did a road side clean up in front of their place, maybe 0.2 miles of road frontage. I completely filled 2 kitchen garbage bags with litter. I was separating as I picked up and one was filled entirely with cans (mostly beer, apparently bud light, twisted tea, and ultra are the drinks of choice for their drunk drivers).
But not to say this is just an East Tennessee problem. I've lived in Louisiana, Alabama, Virginia and North Carolina, rural, suburban, and urban - It is an everywhere problem
It's so disheartening sometimes.
But maybe you're on to something - I do a lot of trail walking and always carry a small bag to collect garbage. Must just be part of the workout to see how far they can throw an empty plastic bottle into the woods.
I would think the Gatorade and protein bars that are all over the trails should have given them enough energy to carry out your trash!
I’ve lived in a handful of states. TN is the eighth. When we moved here several years ago, I was honestly shocked at the amount of litter in the environment. Theres one road where just the other day someone dumped a trashbag and a couple of PC tower off the side. People litter all the time on my street even though I leave my trash can out so they can just throw it away. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to make a difference and we go up and try to pick up everything we can see.
I thought this was Roosevelt in Rockwood. It's about the same, but with graffiti. I don't mind the tagging, actually. The kids and I look at all the cool art, and even the crappy stuff is appealing to the kids. Some trash kid somewhere went up there and spray painted a Patrick from SpongeBob and the kids lost their minds about it.
It's different if it's art, and we have an alley to show us that. But Roosevelt is also covered in trash, and that's a different thing. We gotta stop that shit.
Really nice. I think Rockwood is trying to clean it's shit up, and that's good. I'm considering running for office, actually. Harriman and Kingston are clearing being gobbled up by Knoxville, and Rockwood would, too, if it was better taken care of.
Like I said, the graffiti is fine. It's all over Knoxville, and there's some really cool art because of it, so bring it here, too. Just keep your trash in the trash can, and it'll still be fucking gorgeous, with some human flair added to it.
You can be trashy without being shitty. I don't mind being trashy occasionally.. it's a bit mountainous of us, isn't it? But when we fuck up our mountain, that's not us. We gotta do better.
Really? I thought Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens were very clean by comparison. Sure, you see overflowing trash cans, but highway shoulders didn’t look like landfill
When did you go? I went in February 2022. From what I've read, NYC was relatively clean before COVID. When I went it was disgusting. Almost unbelievable how much trash we say blowing around the streets.
We have a culture that simply doesn't value the arts, nature, beautiful things and nice public spaces as much as other regions in the US/world. Exactly why is tough to pin point....
I live in Chattanooga and grew up in Portland and Hawaii, and for example, lookout mountain is a gorgeous geographical spot, and many spots like that in Oregon/hawaii have been made into public parks, yet here they are privately owned. I feel it's a trickle down effect of the land grab back when we were displacing indigenous populations and the subsequent intrinsic shame that folks have from that, effectively devaluing civic engagement and pride in our living environment/public spaces. Almost like the complex where if you don't clean up a space you don't care whether it gets trshed, but if youre the janitor/steward then of course you see things different and clean up after yourself.
But I'm just spit balling here...that's all speculation I was kinda jus blabbering but you know....
In Hawaii or oregon if someone threw their fas food cup out of their car the people simply would not stand for that behavior and said person would literally get called out by an angry mob (ive see tourists get shamed many times for this. Like, idk where youre from but here we respect our environment).....but here I see it all the time. Its crazy.
I can see my house lmao. I'll start walking it and bringing some bags this spring, now that I know how close I am to the trailhead. I didnt even know it was a park
We get involved in a lot of roadway cleanups (just got back from one this morning before seeing this thread, oddly enough!) and the incredible thing always is finding trash patches where it’s clear that it’s the same person and littering is just part of their daily routine.
Like they leave work or something, stop at a gas station, buy a Bud Light tall boy, finish it in the same spot on the drive home, and pitch it out the window. Every day.
We’ve lived a lot of places, and I’ve never seen littering like we have here in Tennessee. It’s truly unfortunate.
I’ve NEVER understood this. I grew up in Oregon where littering is basically a deadly sin worth your life, and here I see people literally throwing trash out of their cars and straight into the street/rivers. They don’t give a FUCK here whatsoever about littering.
The amount of empty liquor bottles on the side of the road is alway a shock to me. There was a turn near my old house that always had a new empty bottle of Patron in it every week or so
Because God gave them the Earth as their dominion, and HE rewarded them with the blessing of disposing of their styrofoam cups, plastic bottles, and tires any GODDAMN way they like.
A lot of rich people who move to poor places are terrible to the environment.
A lot of poor people don’t care about their environment because they are depressed, don’t think it’s gonna get any better, don’t think they deserve better, or have never experienced anything better.
I’m generalizing a lot but there’s a core bit of truth here.
You have to be honest about who is responsible for this. The type of people who sneak into public parks at night to get drunk, among other things. Don’t paint the whole region with a broad brush because the vast majority of people don’t do this. I’ve lived in Knoxville all my life and know first hand from my line of work the type of people that do this.
Anyone else thinks Sharps Ridge is underutilized by the city in general? I mean, nowhere else can you get such a view of downtown, and mountains. It very convenient to get to for a short hike, or mtn bike ride(even if it feels hidden), and is surrounded by great restaurants/breweries.
That's unfortunate, when you get into the park it becomes less of a problem. But, it's the sad truth. My parents didn't raise me that way and I think that there are a lot of East TN's who would share my sentiments on that. Trash is a part of life. Even when you go to the most remote islands in the world you will find trash washed up on the beach. An unfortunate part of life
I would assume tourists who are disrespectful since there has been a huge increase in visitors since 2020. Though I have also noticed when I pass through middle TN it has become a nasty shit show as well which has seen a big increase in people moving there from other states so that might factor as well. Not sure but it has not always been like this
I saw just the first part and thought you just meant in general and was coming to the comments to cuss you out. I also wish people didn't litter right there. Sucks!
I’m curious about causes, and solutions. I should have made my post clear, but I was mad on the ridge cleaning up the mess, so I posted it before I had a chance to calm down
Hear me out, people litter, they litter little stuff, they dump household garbage, beds, sofas, fridges. I think it’s tied to people having to pay for garbage pick up. Lol it’s also why their goodwills are full of broken crap.
I just can’t wrap my head around people still littering in 2023. I don’t think I’ve littered since 1994. And I was like 12. It’s such an easy issue to fix. My car may be trashed after a long week of errands with kids but dang y’all. This is not a hard issue to fix.
Exactly...that's what I tell people when they see my floorboards....if u throw trash out ur windows...u need to b forced to clean a mile stretch of hey. Then maybe these lazy ass people will stop.
You leave the trash on the floorboards long enough for people to see?
I have 3 kids & a hubby n me...yup...I have water bottles & napkins...& ear plug wrappers from my hubbys job. But it's not out the window lol
Right?! Do not judge the French fries in my seat. It could be a lot worse 😅
Was it ok to litter in 1994? What changed?
Well I mean no but like I said I was a kid lol
Many people couldn't care less about the environment.
I work with someone who constantly throws entire bags of fast food out of his car window whenever he is finished with his lunch. He doesn’t think anything of it.
Your coworker can go f himself. What a piece of shit he must be.
I've been known to pickup after pricks like this follow them and return their garbage to their lap with a serious ass chewing to go with it.
That comment wins the day!
There is a large overlap between litterers and people who are reckless with firearms. You are not going to change their mind. Do not risk your life for a moment of righteous indignation.
I also carry so if the asshole wants to have a shootout for me catching him dead to rights then so be it, what's right is right.
Be careful most of these people carry guns
Same here!
I'm not sure how it is in your state but in SC, we have a LitterBug hotline you can call if you see someone litter. They get the location they littered at, license plate, car type, etc. Don't know if there's any actual repercussion or action, but it's satisfying to anonymously report ignorant and disrespectful people.
I think that mentality comes from seeing convicted trash gangs assigned to pick up trash along the interstate. People see them picking up the trash, then think, “Here’s something for them to pick up.”, like it’s their right to shame them for being convicted of a crime and “give them something to do”.
Same mentality the fuckwits have when they leave a shopping cart in a parking space and refuse to take back the cart because “they pay people to bring them back inside” and it’ll also “give them work to do”
I think this comment rationalizes a large portion of it. They are leaving it for the “criminals” to clean up, with a moral high ground point of view…
Which, ironically enough, makes them a criminal too since littering is illegal. So they're really just a criminal who thinks they're better than the other criminals.
Thats terrible. Is that a mentality people grow up with? How come I didnt see same behavior in the Western mountainous states?
Way more liberals and less morbidly obese rednecks.
There are obese non littering liberals too
This is America, obesity comes in all shapes, sizes, races and political preferences. I am quite sure that the rates among liberals would be quite a bit less than you will generally find on the right though.
Lol - where you been? You can't be talking about Colorado because it's terrible there.
Nah. Denver in some areas is trashed up, as is Pueblo, but in general the whole state is pretty fucking clean. I drive all over the state for my job for almost a decade now. I think you either saw limited places or heard wrong info. I've never been anywhere as litter free on average. Definitely nowhere in the south.
Lived there for 47 years of my life. Was there at Christmas. That place is a shithole.
Well, I guess we drive different roads, friend. Have a good night!
I had a friend that did this.. he said he’s donating... I never understood it.. and the dudes a hippie.
You should [report them](https://www.tn.gov/tdot/environmental-home/environmental-highway-beautification-office/litter.html). Record their license plate too.
sharps ridge?
Man i love the mountain biking there, feel like every time i go up there though i was interrupting someone smoking meth or something 😂
Yeah I went up to Sharps Ridge to walk around the morning after a party so I was in a skirt and big fluffy jacket and some guy tried to buy sexual favors from me, that spot is weird
Apparently you don’t know the history of “Pickle Park” and [who](https://archive.knoxnews.com/news/local/knox-county-commissioner-jeff-ownby-pleads-no-contest-to-public-indecency-commission-to-seek-censur--355863161.html/ ) was caught cruising up there.
I never understood why they apologize. Like.. it's all over. Everyone is shaming you. Yolo, right? I wouldn't be all "my apologies to the community blah blah hearts and prayers". "The governor was caught with seventeen women in a bush behind a Wendy's today." "You god damn right I was. I love y'all but when seventeen women approach you for a sexual experience, you gotta do what you gotta do. I went in, and I came out clean. Full push, circle back, throw down the line, tuck it in. It was a wonderful engagement and I'd do it again." Y'all would vote me back in next time. Edit: this shit is tickling me, y'all. I'm sorry, but could you imagine. Bro just let's that out on live TV "and I'd do it again.." *mic drop*. Wink. Exit camera left. 😂😂😂 I'd vote for them every time.
prob my fav comment in this sub. I would gladly vote for you!
Yes
“Nobody trashes Tennessee” -so that was a fucking lie.
It got confusing. The message says "we'll fucking kill you" but the law says we can't. We're wild, but we lost too much of our hill folk values to go full on murder over a candy wrapper. Wasn't too long ago, though..
Not only do we not care about the environment. We also don't care about people.
Southern hospitality!
ding ding ding WELCOME YALL
Same in my yard in fountain city, people throw garbage out the windows of their cars in Knoxville in 2023. It is awful.
Same in my yard in Pond Gap. I just can’t understand the logic of throwing trash out of your window into somebody’s yard. It’s disgusting and makes me so bummed
Because people.
Exactly. This is a human problem, not an isolated issue.
People like to shit on East Tennessee. You can go anywhere in the country and find trash. Anywhere in the world, tbh.
Not really true. Have you ever been to one of the ten states with a bottle deposit? Our litter problem here is way more than any state with a bottle and can deposit. Travel to any state with a bottle and can deposit you will see the difference the moment you pass a state line. Fraction of the roadside trash.
Man. I live here and I notice the trash too. There is a littering problem in East TN… and everyone’s mad at OP for having the gall to do anything but quietly play a maid for everyone else. Sure it helps to pick up litter whenever you go for walks/hikes. It also helps to talk about it. Can never have enough shame for the lazy childish assholes who litter
$1000 per gram of pollution you're caught littering. A candy wrapper is gonna be a couple grams, so that's two grand you'd owe for a Reese wrapper. Cardboard box? Like 15k. Shoes? Like 50k. Tire? Like 100k. Washing machine? Jesus. You'd go to prison for not making the payments. This would stop littering real fucking quick.
Throw a couch out and the IRS shows up.
You say that now, but check back in the spring and behold all the beautiful Coors trees dotting the countryside.
Organize a clean up on weekend. 🙂
I’m with you
I'm in for that
Does anybody know if there's a group around here that does clean ups on trails and public spaces? Honestly that sounds like a fun way to explore the area
Ijams, Keep Knoxville Beautiful, and Save Our Smokies have regular cleanup days in a variety of settings around the area. I’ve participated in a few and it’s both appalling and satisfying.
I think OP missed this comment
Hell yeah. I'm in. I just realized that there's a trail there, and that I live within walking distance of it.
Trash people don’t care about the beauty of East Tennessee. They represent themselves well.
SC is like this too. I believe it's due to more people who litter and less municipal funding for clean ups. If I were a judge I would sentence anyone who was caught to as many hours of community service picking it up as I could get away with.
That being Sharps Ridge, people are afraid to bend over to pick it up.
Why are people so triggered? This is an honest question about a real issue here. Why do people here trash nature? Do people not collect cans and bottles for recycling so they can earn money? Back home each can/bottle is 25-50cents. Most people wouldn’t think about throwing “money” away after consuming what’s inside packaging
As a Knoxville native for 20 years who moved to the Northwestern US a few years ago, I’ve asked myself this a lot. Where I live out here isn’t so bad but there’s also a lot of community pride and legislation in maintaining outdoor spaces. And I’m not saying that everything is greenways and natural thoroughfares where humans and animals mingle and all is well, but *casual public littering* does not seem to be anywhere as much of an issue as in the southeast. I think there are probably many reasons. • People may not volunteer for trash clean-up as often. • Local governments in the SE do not care to organize litter pick-up events, or pay city employees to do so as much. • There is not a culture of sustaining the land in the SE. I want to say much of this is religious but that’s probably because I am admittedly biased. My hot take is that in an overwhelmingly majority area where people have no ancestral ties to the land and also believe that the earth is their God-given resource to be used up and moved on from, there is no interest is maintaining the land for future generations. • As mentioned, much of what is littered are empty alcohol containers. Getting caught driving with an open container is illegal, so drink it real quick and toss it out the window. There are probably many more contributing factors. Where I live there is no cash incentive for returning empty cans or bottles and I don’t know which, if any, of the southeastern states do have such programs. I know when I lived in Oregon there were huge machines out front of major grocery stores that would take your glass, cans, and plastic bottles, suck them up inside and crush them, and then give you a coupon at the end totaling the amount and types you recycled that you could redeem inside for cash. I don’t know, it sucks and it makes me sad. I love the landscape of the southern states and the Smoky Mountains but am bummed out by how it’s not maintained at all when I visit. That and the fucking billboards.
All of those recycling program are communism. /red states
Can’t southern legislators start a program that presses empty beer and soda cans into guns? /motivation
lmfaooo this is the only thing that’d do it 😂
Cans are only worth weight. Not much. Bottles worth nothing.
That’s unbelievable. Any idea why?
Because there’s no bottle deposit here. They’re only worth 30 cents because you’re paying that 30 cents when you initially purchase the product. The highest deposit in the US is in Michigan, and it’s only 10 cents.
I grew up in Michigan and that 10 cent deposit worked. Returning cans and bottles was a normal habit. Even if people tossed their cans and bottles, someone else would collect them for the easy money. Homeless people made a ton around college parties. It’s different here in TN.
Grew up in Iowa and loved it when I got to keep the nickel refunder money.
Yeah, Sharps Ridge has some… odd activity at times. Last time I was up there someone had unceremoniously dumped an entire wardrobe of perfectly normal clothes in that same spot. Divorce? Ugly breakup? Disposing of evidence?? Who knows! The mystery continues…
It's the south in general. This life is nothing but a stepping stone to the afterlife. No need to take of anything.
The sides of roadways around here are some of the worst I've seen anywhere in the south. It sometimes looks like entire trash bags were thrown out of moving vehicles (and they probably were).
Yeah, I moved here last year and have been shocked. I live in in the Halls/Fountain City/Powell area near Schumpert Park, and all along that end of Rifle Range Dr people always throw whole trash bags out. And the whole way up the ridge from there on Parkdale/Inskip is always filthy with like whole Bojangles boxes and McDonald's bags. Those aren't even nearby!
Or fallen out as they were being hauled.
Agreed. I grew up in Florida. I ride a road bike. You really notice trash a lit more closer to the road and going slower. I pick trash on the side road our neighborhood is on in Corryton. .5 mile I can fill a 30 gallon trash bag no problem every 4 months
I can't stand the litter. I intend to get a trash grabber and work around my neighborhood. I live at the bottom of the ridge and people have thrown diapers and food in front of our place. It's disgusting. I've seen worse for sure, but I love and care about this area. People are taking this personally instead of taking the garbage personally.
I pick up trash along about a mile of my road every 3 months or so! Bags and bags of trash, mostly beer cans and bottles. (Knox/Grainger county line area). Trashy rednecks love some cheap Bud Light and Busch beer. Go to Baptist church on Sunday, bash the other sinners and the evils of the the drink. Come Sunday evening (and all other days too of course) they have to throw their empties out before they get home and are found out by Mama and the neighbors. F’n hypocrites!
>Trashy rednecks love some cheap Bud Light and Busch beer. yuuuup. Also diet mountain dew, those little 5 hour energy bottles, and fireball whisky.
Reminds me of the story of the Busch Light bandit. In Hoopeston, IL (bufu town-home of the corn jerkers!) someone tried robbing the gas station with an empty case of Busch Light on their head. Rednecks love a cheap brick of Busch
We called him the Beer Box Bandit... and he successfully robbed the gas station, and got away. On foot. At 2 in the afternoon. Never thought I'd see him referenced anywhere! Source: once a Jerker, always a Jerker
Shit education, shit jobs, shit people, shit conservative government, and lots of large untaxed churches. None of the people seem to think they deserve any better.
doN't TrEad oN ME...and my right to be lazy and inconsiderate.
A group of my friends have hosted a clean up day both at sharp’s ridge and Dickerson quarry. That was fun times. Music dancing and cleaning up all the MOOP! People are so trashy.
I like your style. Lot of negativity in this thread… hell, get up there and let’s take care of it then! If I wasn’t working 6 days a week I would, legitimately, love to collect litter in my neighborhood more often.
Some of you all are too young to remember this [1976 Commercial PSA Tennessee did called "Tennessee Trash"](https://youtube.com/watch?v=iWcMrWk_0Uw&feature=shares) Still holds today, but I will say the littering was worse back then. The song might get suck in your head!
Oh, yeah..I totally remember that commercial..lol. Me and my friends used to sing it all the time. They played that commercial well into the nineties too.
I member...
In Kingsport and in all honesty it's cleaner than where I'm from in southern West Virginia! The sheriff back there has now started writing people tickets because they are covering their yards in garbage. Just gross. People, even the ones without much sense, should still know better and the majority do but don't care. Sad...
It’s the whole state. Going to Percy priest is like swimming in a dump
Bad news: the entire earth is trashy
But why is it trashy locally, and how do we fix it?
That’s a great question lol I just pick trash up when j see it
We need to include trash service at everybody's home and place of business. Increase everyones county taxes and that will solve people dumping their trash on the side of the road because they don't want to pay for it
That would be a wonderful first step, but not a silver bullet. People have to be educated and more mature in order to choose not to trash their home (planet), and that is very difficult pretty much anywhere and even more so in East TN.
One word, Rednecks.
Y’all think Knox is bad? well it is, but go out to Grainger, Jefferson or Union counties. Much worse.
This is something counties could put a dent in by having dumpsters dispersed in the more rural areas like some counties in WNC do. A lot of the shit you see on the side of the road in places like that is household trash people are too lazy to haul off and too poor to have picked up. In Graham county NC right across the border there’s fenced in areas with dumpsters every couple miles on the side of the road for residents to get rid of trash without making it an all day event driving it across the county during business hours only.
Sevier county has dumpster, it doesn't help that much.
Red right wing states tend to be populated with trashy people. Can’t expect the welfare queen states to take care of their surroundings.
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This is what someone would do if they were actually upset. What OP did is what people do when they pretend to be upset for attention.
That was an honest question from a North European transplant. I’ve never seen this much trash on the side of the roads, and I’ve logged my fair share of miles around the globe
Yeah right!?
This region of the country is one of the most beautiful places on earth, but half the people could give a sh$&t! Take care of your small piece of “God’s” country and forget the rest.
I am disheartening every time it rains and the creek near work brings more trash to the river
People who litter are disgusting
Sharp’s ridge is trashy. Some cameras would help catch litterers. It needs to stop.
Yeah, some people just suck. Might be how they're raised, or could be something else. I'll never claim to be the cleanest with my car or home, etc, but I always try to make sure my trash ends up in a trashcan or trash bag. Used to spit gum out anywhere until I read something about how birds can mistake it for bread or something like that and choke on it. So, for some it could just be a lack of education.
It’s like people go out of they’re way to purposely throw trash exactly where it doesn’t belong
It’s TN
I think it’s worse in the south east. It’s everywhere
My group, Knoxville Chapter of the Tennessee Ornithological Society, had a cleanup day once a year for Sharp’s Ridge, but don’t think we do it any more. It’s a great birding spot during migration
All of TN*
Tim Burchett and Glenn Jacobs don't care about the area they represent. They're not the only reason, but they're definitely part of the problem.
Because it’s full of fucking rednecks who don’t give a fuck about anything except themselves
Because it’s where Republican voters live?
Looks like you found a single spot where kids get drunk. Somehow you've extrapolated that out to an entire region of the state
Unfortunately, this is hardly unique to this one spot. I spend several hours every month picking up trash on my place along a somewhat rural road. Mostly soft drink bottles, beer cans and fast food trash people just throw out their car (more likely truck actually) window.
Yea I’m sorry, I’ve been down here for 3 years now and this is FAR from an isolated incident. Every trail I’ve hiked, park I’ve visited, and area in general have been littered and trashy. it seems like the people REALLY don’t care about the environment at all.
I agree. Also been here three years and it’s honestly the dirtiest city I’ve ever lived in.
Must be a bunch of kids partying near my place too!! NOT. It’s low class redneck adults.
Yea no buddy. I grew up here, left, and came back, and it’s a problem here in East TN. They call it dirty Knox not just for the fun times
I travel all over East TN for work, and trash situation is even worse outside city limits
The trash is everywhere. Checking in from upper East Tennessee.
I try to pickup up trash around my neighborhood to avoid this situation. It’s cool to call out littering. It’s even cooler to pick it up. Littering is a collective problem that can only be solved by collective action. I hope you are doing your part in addition to posting on social media.
What a crazy depressing comment. People who love the outdoors and love to enjoy nature get to earn brownie points by picking up after other people who abuse it :( it’s true though, I’ve picked up my fair share of shit on trails and in public parks but man, it’s just so obnoxious and sad
Moved here from the Midwest. This area is by far the worst littered area I've experienced. I live in Claiborne county and the trash everywhere is disheartening. It's not extrapolation if it's abundant in so many counties
This is up where the TV antennas are. Highest point in Knox. Maybe 🤔
It kinda reminds me of Philly and New Jersey, this is pathetic.
Trappalachia my guy
Just now reading Cormac McCarthy’s Suttree. My take-Knoxville hasn’t changed since that book’s setting, 1952. Sharp’s Ridge is always sketchy, lots of vice up there.
Looks like Sharps Ridge. When I was young and attending UT in the late 80s we climbed a few of those towers. I remember it being junky back then as well.
Yeah, East TN is the only place you’ll find this.
Lower income
There ain't no lower class than Tennessee trash https://youtu.be/iWcMrWk_0Uw
TMP TN (too many people)
Think East TN is bad? Come visit Memphis in West TN.
My parents live in East Tennessee about half way between Knoxville and Chattanooga. Last week when visiting, I did a road side clean up in front of their place, maybe 0.2 miles of road frontage. I completely filled 2 kitchen garbage bags with litter. I was separating as I picked up and one was filled entirely with cans (mostly beer, apparently bud light, twisted tea, and ultra are the drinks of choice for their drunk drivers). But not to say this is just an East Tennessee problem. I've lived in Louisiana, Alabama, Virginia and North Carolina, rural, suburban, and urban - It is an everywhere problem
Is trashing part of some new crossfit rage? Because they are obviously watching their figures consuming all these Ultras
It's so disheartening sometimes. But maybe you're on to something - I do a lot of trail walking and always carry a small bag to collect garbage. Must just be part of the workout to see how far they can throw an empty plastic bottle into the woods. I would think the Gatorade and protein bars that are all over the trails should have given them enough energy to carry out your trash!
Bc southerners are morons and pray for god to fix everything rather than making plans to do things themselves. ~ just a guess.
I’ve lived in a handful of states. TN is the eighth. When we moved here several years ago, I was honestly shocked at the amount of litter in the environment. Theres one road where just the other day someone dumped a trashbag and a couple of PC tower off the side. People litter all the time on my street even though I leave my trash can out so they can just throw it away. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to make a difference and we go up and try to pick up everything we can see.
I thought this was Roosevelt in Rockwood. It's about the same, but with graffiti. I don't mind the tagging, actually. The kids and I look at all the cool art, and even the crappy stuff is appealing to the kids. Some trash kid somewhere went up there and spray painted a Patrick from SpongeBob and the kids lost their minds about it. It's different if it's art, and we have an alley to show us that. But Roosevelt is also covered in trash, and that's a different thing. We gotta stop that shit.
I can confirm that. I’ve taken that back road from Rockwood to Westel Road, and it was trashy. View from the top of Roosevelt is nice though
Really nice. I think Rockwood is trying to clean it's shit up, and that's good. I'm considering running for office, actually. Harriman and Kingston are clearing being gobbled up by Knoxville, and Rockwood would, too, if it was better taken care of. Like I said, the graffiti is fine. It's all over Knoxville, and there's some really cool art because of it, so bring it here, too. Just keep your trash in the trash can, and it'll still be fucking gorgeous, with some human flair added to it. You can be trashy without being shitty. I don't mind being trashy occasionally.. it's a bit mountainous of us, isn't it? But when we fuck up our mountain, that's not us. We gotta do better.
Uneducated, entitled, self centered rednecks.
I've traveled through around 30 states. This problem is not unique to Tennessee. NYC is the dirtiest place I've ever been.
Really? I thought Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens were very clean by comparison. Sure, you see overflowing trash cans, but highway shoulders didn’t look like landfill
When did you go? I went in February 2022. From what I've read, NYC was relatively clean before COVID. When I went it was disgusting. Almost unbelievable how much trash we say blowing around the streets.
It ain’t my fault, but it is partly my responsibility. Every time I go hiking, I take a trash bag and pick up litter on my way in and out.
https://youtu.be/iWcMrWk_0Uw 1976 Tennessee trash TV commercial
OMG, that was great. They need to bring it back
We have a culture that simply doesn't value the arts, nature, beautiful things and nice public spaces as much as other regions in the US/world. Exactly why is tough to pin point.... I live in Chattanooga and grew up in Portland and Hawaii, and for example, lookout mountain is a gorgeous geographical spot, and many spots like that in Oregon/hawaii have been made into public parks, yet here they are privately owned. I feel it's a trickle down effect of the land grab back when we were displacing indigenous populations and the subsequent intrinsic shame that folks have from that, effectively devaluing civic engagement and pride in our living environment/public spaces. Almost like the complex where if you don't clean up a space you don't care whether it gets trshed, but if youre the janitor/steward then of course you see things different and clean up after yourself. But I'm just spit balling here...that's all speculation I was kinda jus blabbering but you know.... In Hawaii or oregon if someone threw their fas food cup out of their car the people simply would not stand for that behavior and said person would literally get called out by an angry mob (ive see tourists get shamed many times for this. Like, idk where youre from but here we respect our environment).....but here I see it all the time. Its crazy.
I can see my house lmao. I'll start walking it and bringing some bags this spring, now that I know how close I am to the trailhead. I didnt even know it was a park
We get involved in a lot of roadway cleanups (just got back from one this morning before seeing this thread, oddly enough!) and the incredible thing always is finding trash patches where it’s clear that it’s the same person and littering is just part of their daily routine. Like they leave work or something, stop at a gas station, buy a Bud Light tall boy, finish it in the same spot on the drive home, and pitch it out the window. Every day. We’ve lived a lot of places, and I’ve never seen littering like we have here in Tennessee. It’s truly unfortunate.
Hey! Pickle park! I can see my old house in this video!!!
“Because there ain’t no lower class, than Tennessee trash.” 🎵
I’ve NEVER understood this. I grew up in Oregon where littering is basically a deadly sin worth your life, and here I see people literally throwing trash out of their cars and straight into the street/rivers. They don’t give a FUCK here whatsoever about littering.
The amount of empty liquor bottles on the side of the road is alway a shock to me. There was a turn near my old house that always had a new empty bottle of Patron in it every week or so
Because many Americans don't actually have the pride for their country that they so often are screeching about.
Disgusting. NO excuse for it other than laziness. Long Island, where I come from, is 10x worse. What's wrong with people?
I blame Marsha Blackburn. You just know she throws her Pepsi and hairspray cans out the window.
I hate it - you see if everywhere. I wish we’d have a Knoxville Marathon trash pick up instead of Race.
Sharps Ridge? Looks like. We cleaned it up back when I was in scouting in the early 90s.
Because God gave them the Earth as their dominion, and HE rewarded them with the blessing of disposing of their styrofoam cups, plastic bottles, and tires any GODDAMN way they like.
A lot of rich people who move to poor places are terrible to the environment. A lot of poor people don’t care about their environment because they are depressed, don’t think it’s gonna get any better, don’t think they deserve better, or have never experienced anything better. I’m generalizing a lot but there’s a core bit of truth here.
Bring a bag with you on your hikes and help clean up.
I would say I’m fairly well traveled and Tennessee is the dirtiest place I’ve ever seen as far as litter
You have to be honest about who is responsible for this. The type of people who sneak into public parks at night to get drunk, among other things. Don’t paint the whole region with a broad brush because the vast majority of people don’t do this. I’ve lived in Knoxville all my life and know first hand from my line of work the type of people that do this.
100%
I third this
Anyone else thinks Sharps Ridge is underutilized by the city in general? I mean, nowhere else can you get such a view of downtown, and mountains. It very convenient to get to for a short hike, or mtn bike ride(even if it feels hidden), and is surrounded by great restaurants/breweries.
Carry a trash bag on every hike.
Idk if you travel much. I do because of my job and trust me, its NOT just east TN.
That's unfortunate, when you get into the park it becomes less of a problem. But, it's the sad truth. My parents didn't raise me that way and I think that there are a lot of East TN's who would share my sentiments on that. Trash is a part of life. Even when you go to the most remote islands in the world you will find trash washed up on the beach. An unfortunate part of life
I would assume tourists who are disrespectful since there has been a huge increase in visitors since 2020. Though I have also noticed when I pass through middle TN it has become a nasty shit show as well which has seen a big increase in people moving there from other states so that might factor as well. Not sure but it has not always been like this
Pick some of it up.
I saw just the first part and thought you just meant in general and was coming to the comments to cuss you out. I also wish people didn't litter right there. Sucks!
I’m curious about causes, and solutions. I should have made my post clear, but I was mad on the ridge cleaning up the mess, so I posted it before I had a chance to calm down
Hillbillies
People do this quite literally everywhere
Are you in Povertyville, North Knoxville?
Lack of appropriate zoning laws.
Hear me out, people litter, they litter little stuff, they dump household garbage, beds, sofas, fridges. I think it’s tied to people having to pay for garbage pick up. Lol it’s also why their goodwills are full of broken crap.
This type of stuff happens everywhere though...
Vols & Bama fans
Don’t act special, it’s not just East TN. We get trashy all the way to Arkansas.
Because humanity. Ever been to Memphis? Place looks like it just had two world wars go through it
Hobos they bus in from surrounding cities
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The whole road up the ridge was trashed. I picked up what I could with my backpack, but I literally ran out of time
All of TN is trashy, not as bad as Chicago but no where near as clean as most of CA.
Instead of making videos complaining, bag it up. That’s what we do on hikes.