We are trashing our island and the situation is getting worse each day.

As I drive along the H-1 from East Honolulu through town each day I see massive amounts of rubbish everywhere.

Construction materials, bottles and cans line the roadways. Plastic bags caught in the tall weeds flap like flags.

Our beaches and other public areas are just as bad.

This is a problem that we really didn’t have long ago. When did we stop caring about our home and where we live?

We talk a lot about protecting the aina, but, sadly, not much is being done.

We need to do a much better job of taking care, and we need to start now.

Parents need to teach their children the importance of picking up, and then practice what they preach.

Teachers need to reinforce in the schools at all levels. Instead of the $200 littering fine signs along the roadways, how about posters at the airport reminding everyone to help keep our island litter free?

Little things will have immediate effects.

>> Let your friends and family know it is not cool to dump stuff from the car.

>> When you change the baby’s diaper at the beach or neighborhood football game, walk the 30 feet to toss it in the rubbish rather than toss it in the naupaka or dumping on the street.

>> When heading to work or taking a load of opala to the dump, secure the bed of your truck. A lot of the rubbish along the roads is work or dump waste that blew off unsecured trucks.

The governor and mayor must both make maintenance and cleanup of common areas a higher priority. Allowing our island home to become trashed shows a lack of caring at all levels.

There are many individuals and organizations such as Adopt-a-Highway that do regular cleanups, but it is not enough.

I clean up an area near my home on a regular basis, and it is disheartening to see it trashed again within a short time afterward.

We all need to do our part to stop littering as well as helping to pick it up. Make sure your friends and family members understand the problem and do their part to assist.

Again, secure your truck loads. Take any rubbish out with you when you leave an area. Join in an organized litter pick up now and then.

To the person who uses those cute pink dog poop bags, thanks for scooping the poop, but, hey, don’t then leave it along the road or sidewalk.

We are at the tipping point, and the problem is only getting worse.

I am angry that we have let the problem get to this point, and ashamed that we continue to let it occur. Our beautiful island looks like a place whose residents have no regard for where they live.

What is even sadder is that many so-called Third World countries are actually much cleaner and their residents take pride in keeping their lands clean.

It’s not too late to fix this problem, but we’re getting close.