CARENCRO, La — Louisiana roadways are littered with approximately 143.8 million pieces of trash, and the state spends an estimated $91.4 million each year on cleanup efforts, according to Keep Louisiana Beautiful.
But in Carencro, a new grant could help the city cut down on litter—and the cost that comes with it.
The city recently received funding to support litter enforcement and surveillance efforts. The money will go toward installing cameras to monitor illegal dumping and littering in parks, streets, and other public areas.
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“When you ride around the park area, you see trash all over the ground,” said Eddie Bonnet, a Carencro resident who volunteers his time to help clean up around the city. “We want to keep our city beautiful. We want to give our children something that looks good. But when you have litter all around, it makes people not want to visit.”
The Carencro Police Department will use the grant to expand its existing street camera program. Officials say the added surveillance will help catch violators, enforce litter laws, and discourage future dumping.
“I believe it’s going to be a deterrent,” Bonnet said. “It’s going to let people know that we mean business when it comes to litter.”
Beyond aesthetics, Bonnet emphasized that uncollected trash poses other problems—especially when it clogs drainage systems.
“Our desire is definitely not to have our ditches and areas flooded,” he said. “When litter is in ditches and not being picked up, it actually causes flooding.”
Bonnet encourages residents to take pride in their city and dispose of trash properly.
“For those who are out there throwing things in our city, we’re gonna have eyes everywhere,” he said. “The best thing to do is pay at the dump site—or you’re going to be getting a ticket in the mail.”
To report littering violations, residents can call the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries' anti-litter hotline at 855-LA-LITTER.
The agency is the state’s leading litter enforcement body.
