WINDSOR, ONT. -- The City of Windsor is asking residents to properly discard their PPE, if they’re going to use them on essential errands.
Health officials say residents can wear gloves and cloth face masks, to protect themselves and those around them from COVID-19 when physical distancing isn’t possible.
They aren’t outright recommending the use because they fear it will give residents a false sense of security if not properly handled.
They are starting to see PPE littering local grocery store parking lots and near hospitals.
“I think it is despicable deplorable,” Ontarian Sarah Dunn tells CTV News. “I don't understand, if I’m able to clean up after my dog why can someone put their glove in garbage.”
Anne Marie Albidone, manager of environment services for the City of Windsor agrees.
“It’s really infuriating,” says Albidone.
Albidone says they usually have to spend a lot of time cleaning up the city after the winter snow melts away and reveals all the litter left behind.
In the current Covid-19 pandemic, she says there as a greater risk to the people who have to clean it all up.
The City of Windsor is running essential services only, and Albidone says their crews are working on essential things like garbage, yard waste and recycling collection.
She feels bad for people who are working in grocery stores, who are already putting themselves at risk to keep the community fed.
“And now with people discarding their PPE’s in parking lots its requiring those who then have to go out and put an added risk that really doesn’t need to be there,” according to Albidone.
The city is also pleading with the public to not drop off clothing and furniture donations at local charity bins.
One on Provincial Road in Windsor is especially bad, where the donations are scattered across the lot and are now likely no good for repurposing.
Albidone says in this case, the donation bins are on private property and so the city can’t go in and collect the donations left carelessly behind.
“This property owner is doing something that they thought was good and great for the community there and now it’s causing this huge mess,” says Albidone.
