Littering

[Crydda]

Isn't it about time that riders were banned from discarding their water bottles and food packaging, anywhere they like, instead of having their 'domestiques' or team cars collect their garbage?
The sight of trash being thrown away, without any regard for the environment, is disgusting and unacceptable, as well as damaging to the image of the sport.
As a keen cyclist, I know that even a few grams of extra weight can be crucial, but the sport must come to terms with changing attitudes towards the environment and I noticed that, during the Paris-Roubaix, earlier this year, some Belgium authorities took a dim view of riders actions.
I hope other authorities follow this example, thus forcing the notoriously intransigent and backwards cycling administrators, to take action.

 

[Ferminal]

I think you will find it was La Fleche Wallone, not Paris-Roubaix. And that the "action" was taken by a 3rd party environmental group requesting criminal charges, not by the authorities.

 

[theswordsman]

Cervelo Test Team uses bottles that are a hundred percent biodegradable in a year, so if the fans miss a few, they'll eventually go away. It's a start.

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/elite-unveil-eco-friendly-water-bottle-21517

 

[Straßenrennen]

I THINK Milram also use the same bio bottles. I know dear Gerry was talking about it last year.

 

[Susan Westemeyer]

I THINK Milram also use the same bio bottles. I know dear Gerry was talking about it last year.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/milram-to-use-biodegradable-water-bottles

Strassenrennen: Kennen wir uns?

Susan

 

[Barrus]

Cervelo Test Team uses bottles that are a hundred percent biodegradable in a year, so if the fans miss a few, they'll eventually go away. It's a start.

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/elite-unveil-eco-friendly-water-bottle-21517

I thought Lotto and Quickstep are using the same at the moment, as is Rabobank at the moment, but I'm not completely sure, I heard something like that at the Flemish account of LBL, they were then speaking about the incident at Fleche

 

[Susan Westemeyer]

I think you will find it was La Fleche Wallone, not Paris-Roubaix. And that the "action" was taken by a 3rd party environmental group requesting criminal charges, not by the authorities.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/fleche-wallonne-riders-face-criminal-littering-charges

Susan

 

[Michielveedeebee]

yup a lot of protour teams use bottles that can be recycled and it's a big thing for the fans to catch those bottles

 

[BroDeal]

All race organizers need to do is spend a few euros to pay someone to spend a day picking up trash after a race and it will be a net positive for the environment.

 

[Ferminal]

All race organizers need to do is spend a few euros to pay people someone to spend a day picking up trash after a race and it will be a net positive for the environment.

Lies.. the only solution is to put them in jail and ban them from cycling for life!

 

[Archibald]

All race organizers need to do is spend a few euros to pay someone to spend a day picking up trash after a race and it will be a net positive for the environment.

new meaning for the Broomwagon...

i'm sure there are some juvenile detainees or folks sentenced to "community service" that could be used for this at no extra cost to the organisers

 

[brianf7]

All race organizers need to do is spend a few euros to pay someone to spend a day picking up trash after a race and it will be a net positive for the environment.

Well down here in the land of Oz the council employ casual contractors to do the job. same mob who clean up after the footy.

They get $ 22 per hour casual. usualy a 12 hour shift.

Not bad money for a day on the brush & shovel.

The council claim that the event brings heaps of tourists and money to the area.

 

[Crydda]

A little extreme

Thanks for the responses to my post. It's good to know that bio-degradable bottles are now being used and I think banning riders for life is a little extreme for a littering offense.
However, the sight of empty bottles being thrown away, apparently, with no regard for the environment, surely gives a very poor impression, to a TV audience, of a sport whose reputation is already at an extremely low ebb.

 

[L'arriviste]

Reading this thread reminded of a CN report from the Giro:

"...when he turned pro with Phonak in 2004, [Johann Tschopp] was marginalised because of his obsession with ecology. He would refused [sic] to throw any rubbish on the roadside."

JF Quénet's slightly iffy Euroenglish doesn't help, but one has to wonder if that was the real reason why Tschopp's Phonak teammates marginalised him, given that he was also anti-doping.

Anyway, this isn't the Clinic, so I think Tschopp's attitude to the environment is commendable. He is probably a pretty switched-on fellow notwithstanding his Cima Coppi faux pas and the Swiss have long been notable for their environmental concerns. People who find such concerns somehow eccentric are really the odd ones out here.

 

[JA.Tri]

Lies.. the only solution is to put them in jail and ban them from cycling for life!

Ferminal, is that not a bit harsh, surely a 2 year ban is sufficient.

 

[ProfTournesol]

yup a lot of protour teams use bottles that can be recycled and it's a big thing for the fans to catch those bottles

that still leaves all the empty gels

 

[Michielveedeebee]

that still leaves all the empty gels

they should put those back in their jerseys. I do so too

 

[craig1985]

IIRC the Japenese team that rode the Tour of Britian in 2005 actually handed their empty water bottles back to the the team car when they were finished.

 

[scribe]

All race organizers need to do is spend a few euros to pay someone to spend a day picking up trash after a race and it will be a net positive for the environment.

someone could easily walk a few thousand miles....on 2 sides of the road.

 

[eljimberino]

Yeh, Ive got a few Lang gel wrappers on my mantel piece. Best day of my life.

 

[Christian]

during the Paris-Roubaix, earlier this year, some Belgium authorities took a dim view of riders actions.

I remember that, with 2 km's to go and being in the lead with approximately 7 minutes, Cancellara threw all the wrappers that he still had in his pocket out, and on French T.V. they didn't like that: "As if that would cost him the win".

I think they have a point ....

Also on Eurosport they said that the fans pick up a lot of the bottles as souvenirs, but I think that only counts for TdF and some of the classics, a lot of times there's almost no one along the roads to pick it up!

 

[Offtheback]

Reading this thread reminded of a CN report from the Giro:

"...when he turned pro with Phonak in 2004, [Johann Tschopp] was marginalised because of his obsession with ecology. He would refused [sic] to throw any rubbish on the roadside."

JF Quénet's slightly iffy Euroenglish doesn't help, but one has to wonder if that was the real reason why Tschopp's Phonak teammates marginalised him, given that he was also anti-doping.

Anyway, this isn't the Clinic, so I think Tschopp's attitude to the environment is commendable. He is probably a pretty switched-on fellow notwithstanding his Cima Coppi faux pas and the Swiss have long been notable for their environmental concerns. People who find such concerns somehow eccentric are really the odd ones out here.

The Swiss are big on re-cycling (sic). You can't just knock down an old house and dump it: you have to pull it apart, and set aside old tiles, timber etc that go to places where they can hopefully be re-used. I guess he gets his attitude from his culture.

I guess that there are fewer broken bottles on the road over there! (puncture from glass this week - changed tube in the rain :-(

 

[dgodave]

If we could start collecting saliva-DNA sample from bottles and gel wrappers, that would end the litter problem.
.

 

[L'arriviste]

If we could start collecting saliva-DNA sample from bottles and gel wrappers, that would end the litter problem.
.

Well, it works for dogs!

>> Reuters article

 

[Anonymous]

why dont they just nominate one rider from each team as a litter collector. Couple of panniers on the back and he just picks up all the empty bottles, gel wrappers etc as he goes. Maybe all the litter collectors could ride together and be exempt from time exclusions or something.

If the likes of cav are going to have days in the mountains where they just trundle along, chatting and whathaveyou, they might as well do something along the way.