From: ian blenkharn@ianblenkharn.com
Category: Miscellaneous
Date: 14 Mrz 2008
Time: 12:57:57 +0100
Remote Name: 86.133.17.12
"Needle collection and retrieval is year round but as the snow melts it becomes a more significant problem.
"That from Assistant Fire Chief Bob Fawcett who says they'd rather you don't touch the needles. He says fire personnel are trained to handle the problem and if you can wait a few minutes for them to arrive and show them the site, it would be a real help.
[more]
In the UK, the Local Authority approach to the retrieval of needles discarded in the community leaves a lot to be desired, and a paper is soon to appear in print to examine this issues (keep an eye on the News page of the main web site).
Needles on beaches are an incredible hazard. Easy to miss and quickly buried, but not sufficient to protect those who might take off their shoes to enjoy the beach and walk barefoot onto a discarded needle. And then there is the other extreme, as the above report reminds us.
I hadn't thought about it before, but in cold countries, needles easily get lost in the snow. As he snow melts, it much seem like an epidemic!