Too Much Trash: How Litter is Hurting Animals

This book might have come with a warning: “Contains Disturbing Content!” Its descriptions paint a horrible picture of how we are treating the environment and its wild inhabitants. The Introduction asks why we scatter so much trash that can harm animals, and what will it take to clean up the mess? The first three chapters lay out distressing facts about how litter has become so deadly for wildlife, its largely avoidable sources and the disastrous effects it can have in all the places it is dumped, blown, washed, burned, left to decay, and too often ignored. You’ll be more than ready to read Chapter 4 with its creative suggestions for solutions and encouragement to become involved in the daunting clean-up task. Resources include a few of the many recent books for young readers on this topic, along with links to online sites for further investigation. The Glossary gives a lengthy list of terms used in bold text. An Index will complete the final copy.

Along with well-captioned photos, some interesting inserts are included. Small boxes ask: Is this Rubbish? True or False? For example, that dryer lint you put outside for birds to use as nesting material actually contains chemicals from detergents, and synthetic fibers not sturdy enough for nests. A couple of quizzes provide an interactive aspect: one is a photo to guess how many types of litter you can spot, another is a list of actions (eg. releasing paper lanterns into a waterbody) with the question, “Is this littering?” Four “Animal Spotlight” sections target the specific effects of litter on Land Mammals, Birds, Marine Wildlife, Pets and Farm Animals. Several other inserts describe projects such as cleanup on Mount Everest and in a river in Indonesia.

We’re mostly unaware of how many things humans have created for our convenience that end up being a death sentence to animals. Everything we toss out—from cigarette butts to old appliances, and the enormous varieties of plastics and toxic materials—can injure animals or fool them into ingesting substances they think are food. The result can be long, lingering suffering. The author provides a thorough examination with many specific examples to consider. She goes to great lengths to point out the consequences when we thoughtlessly litter food items, for instance. The contents of processed food are not suited to animals, depriving them of necessary nutrients, while decaying food can be toxic, and consuming the packaging can lead to entanglements or damage internal organs. It’s a long chain effect, but that plastic package dropped along a hiking trail can even prevent plant growth, depriving animals of future homes and food.

Graphic photos point out that landfills aren’t the answer: garbage doesn’t miraculously ‘go away’ once it reaches that designated site. Neither is burning a solution as the burning emits pollutants. And what washes out to sea may be largely out of sight; nevertheless it gathers in large patches (the Great Pacific Garbage Patch may be twice the size of Texas) with widespread effects on marine life, and to which no country claims ownership. The last chapter of this book offers details of imaginative plans for clean up: groups that tackle litter collection, robots that slurp up floating litter, projects to turn plastic waste into useful items. Two pages are devoted to ideas concerned young readers can easily embrace. And who knew there was already a list of Special Days on the calendar to draw attention to this topic?

The real solution, of course, is to reduce littering in the first place. But first people have to understand the extent of the problem, accept responsibility and commit to becoming part of the solution. As the early chapters showed, it’s a daunting challenge. Books like Too Much Trash: How Litter is Hurting Animals will help young readers focus on not only making wise choices to help wildlife but also in taking action for a cleaner future for the world they will inherit.