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Facts about littering

Littering Statistics and Facts

More than two million pieces of litter are dropped in the UK daily (Keep Britain Tidy). That’s an incredible amount of rubbish disposed of irresponsibly. Each bit adds up and has a hugely negative impact on the environment and wildlife. In some cases, it means valuable reusable resources and materials are lost too.

Litter refers to dropping drink cans, bottles, food packaging, cigarette butts, paper, and other bits of rubbish in public places. It’s incredibly unsightly, can attract pests, and cause potential health hazards. Items of litter can even make their way into our oceans as marine litter, which is a big global issue.

To understand how damaging litter is to the environment and why tackling it is important to protect the planet, we’ve pulled together some shocking littering statistics. Discover the scale of the problem across the UK and the wider world with these facts and statistics about littering.

Littering waste statistics are derived from a mix of measured and modelled sources. Global totals are based on UN and WWF estimates, which collate national data and apply modelling where data gaps exist. UK figures are drawn from government statistical publications, combining measured waste collections with sector estimates. Where national counts vary by source, the most recent peer-reviewed or official data have been used.

What is littering?

Littering is the act of making somewhere (usually an open space or public place) untidy by dropping one or more pieces of rubbish and leaving it there. This could be something small like an empty crisp packet or aluminium drinks can. It may also involve leaving a large number of waste objects behind.

There are many sources of litter. Pedestrians may drop rubbish on city streets and footpaths, motorists sometimes chuck litter out of their vehicle windows when driving, and people litter when leaving behind leftovers after a picnic or at a public event. All litter is unsightly and can harm the environment and wildlife.

Littering isn’t the same as fly-tipping. The difference between littering and fly-tipping is that dropping litter usually means leaving behind a few or many bits of small rubbish pieces associated with eating, drinking, and smoking. Fly-tipping refers to illegally dumping household, industrial, or commercial waste in inappropriate places, such as parks and fields.

litter on a street.

Litter statistics

The facts and figures for global littering are astounding. Countries such as Japan and Singapore have effectively clamped down on littering but litter statistics from other parts of the globe show there’s still a mountain of work to tackle the problem. Here are some staggering statistics about littering from around the world:

  • About 70% of marine litter is food wrappers and packaging (WWF)
  • Cigarette butts are the most littered item in the world. Around 4.5 trillion cigarette butts are littered around the world every year (FCTC)
  • Nine billion tonnes of litter ends up in the oceans across the planet each year (UN)
  • Animals most affected by litter in the world are all sea creatures, including fish, whales, turtles, and dolphins. More than 100,000 die annually after consuming or becoming entangled in plastic litter (WWF)
  • Around 60% of global water pollution is linked to littering (Greenwood GOV)
  • There could already be more than 150 million tonnes of plastic litter in the world’s oceans, by 2050 there may be more plastic than fish in the planet’s seas (UNEP)
  • It’s estimated that more than 40% of global litter is burned in the open air, which releases toxic emissions (World Bank)
  • Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a boom in PPE-related litter with 207 million PPE gloves and masks littering roadways and waterways in the USA (KAB)
  • Littering in the USA creates more than 100 million tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, that’s like adding another 10 million cars on the road (Internal Estimate)
  • There are more than 25 billion bits of litter along waterways in the USA and over 23 billion pieces of litter alongside US roadways (KAB)
  • Strict waste management laws and cultural practices mean there’s barely any littering in Japan (World Economic Forum)

Facts about litter 
in the UK

Litter in the UK is an ongoing issue that harms our streets, environment, and wallets. Cleaning up costs the country millions. There are laws and penalties in place to discourage dropping litter but the figures for litter in the UK show it’s still a huge problem. See the scale of the issue with these UK littering statistics and facts:

  • Cleaning up litter from UK streets (excluding parks and public places) costs British taxpayers £500 million every year (Keep Britain Tidy)
  • Scotland spends about £46 million annually to clean up litter (Zero Waste Scotland)
  • 764,000 pieces of litter were recorded as being found on UK beaches in 2024 (MCS)
  • Surveys found that 48% of people in the UK admit to dropping litter, plenty more probably dare not own up (Keep Britain Tidy)
  • Every weekend around 3 million bits of litter are dropped on UK roads by motorists (Keep Britain Tidy)
  • Half a million pieces of litter enter oceans from UK rivers each year (GOV)
  • Keep Britain Tidy found after smoking-related rubbish that confectionery packs, soft drink bottles and cans, and fast-food-related packaging made up the most litter
  • Authorised officers can issue a fixed penalty charge of up to £150 for a litter offence, while prosecutions and convictions in court could lead to a maximum fine of £2,500 (GOV)
  • In England, across 2021/22 there were almost 1.1 million fly-tipping incidents recorded (Neighbourhood Watch)
  • 61% of all fly-tipping incidents involved household waste (Neighbourhood Watch)

Explore more waste facts

Discover more facts about other types of waste and industries in these guides:

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Published 8th August 2024 by Mark Hall. Last modified 4th February 2026