Sundre RCMP and Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (AESRD) officials are hoping that an enhanced police patrol program this summer will help more visitors to the West Country get the message that they need to clean up after themselves.Although the amount of littering seen in the scenic wilderness area has been slightly down this year from the recent past, it remains a problem, said Don Livingston, land management planning forester with AESRD.“I don't think anyone in Canada doesn't know that you are not supposed to throw your garbage on the ground,” Livingston told the Gazette. “I think people are just making a conscious decision to say the heck with it.”Littering continues to be seen at random campsites, on wellsites, along roadways and elsewhere, he said, noting there is also an ongoing problem with people dumping unwanted appliances such as fridges and stoves at wellsites and other locations in the West Country, he said.The littering itself is being done by persons of most age groups, he said.“It can be random, but generally on the May long weekend it's usually the youth groups,” he said. “Overall, all age groups are leaving garbage behind. Generally some of the youth parties seem to be the biggest culprits.”Tens of thousands of visitors travel to campgrounds and other outdoor areas west of Sundre every summer, with long weekends usually the busiest times.During the recent May long weekend Sundre RCMP officers noticed a reduction in littering incidents compared with 2011, although there were certainly places where littering did take place.At one location near Beaver Lake, about 20 kilometres northwest of Sundre, campers left debris scattered around a random campsite, debris that included food containers and even pieces of furniture.In an effort to reduce littering and other violations in the West Country, Sundre RCMP detachment is launching a new enhanced patrol program starting this month.The solicitor general department has made funding available to the Sundre RCMP detachment so that officers can patrol the West Country throughout the summer.Sundre RCMP Cpl. Ryan Hodge said he hopes the new patrols will make a difference.“The more people who realize that we are on patrol in those areas, the more that they will realize that there was law out there,” said Hodge. “We are hoping for a good officer presence out there. I think the message that people shouldn't be littering out there will be getting through.”As well as targeting people who litter, the new patrols will also see officers checking to ensure visitors adhere to drunk driving laws, and off-highway vehicle regulations, he said.Environment and Sustainable Resource Development officers will be working with RCMP officers throughout the summer, said Livingston.“We are doing some joint patrols with RCMP and some other groups in the Clearwater area, which is from Drayton Valley to the Sundre area,” said Livingston.Those patrols will include the Ya Ha Tinda and the Burnstick Lake areas, he noted.
