Where have all the environmentalists gone? They were out in force to ban grocery shopping bags which only resulted in increased revenue for the store who could now charge $.10 for a bag to bring your grocery’s home in. The same bags which were banned in grocery stores can now be purchased in any store. ("Area communities receive money from nip bottle surcharge," May 1).

The state placed a $.05 tax on liquor nip bottles which goes directly to the towns in which the sales are made to eliminate roadside litter. The City of Norwich has just received its first payment of $43,609 from the sales of nips in their town which equates to 872,192 nip bottles which litter our roads. With that money they plan to hire an environmental compliance coordinator (a desk jockey). According to the Public Works Director that person will not be out picking up the nip litter but will work with volunteers and community organization to have them pick up the litter, like that will ever happen. The money from the tax on nips would be better spent on hiring a lobbyist to enact legislation to ban the sale of nips which is the only way the litter can be eliminated.

Scott Harrington

Norwich