Why are you trashing your public lands?

I have a membership at a range but sometimes because of work and family obligations I just don't have the time to be able to make it out there so I use the next best thing...the public land north of where I live.  Recently I went out there with my older girls to shoot some trap.  Out of the many questions that were asked me, the one that really stood out to me was "why doesn't anyone else pick up their shells?"  The question was an easy one to answer, "they were lazy, and have no respect for public lands."

It's a terrible tragedy to watch our public lands get abused by individuals that obviously have no respect for something that belongs to all of us.  Everyone pays to be able to use these lands...they are ours.  So why do people trash them?  Luckily I don't have the answer, because if I did then that would mean I somehow share the same thought pattern as those types of individuals.

So what can I do to try and install some values into my own kids so they don't show the same blatant disregard for our lands that these others have?  The first thing that comes to mind is lets show some responsibility on our part and just pick up the trash.  So that's what we did.  We grabbed some garbage bags and headed out there one night and just started picking it up.  We worked hard for a few hours and we made somewhat of a dent, but with the amount of garbage out there it will take multiple trips.  We focused this time just on shells...and we got a bunch.

This doesn't look like a lot but this pile of shells in my garbage can is about a foot deep.  The kids never complained once.  They've been out here a few times shooting with me and just like me they want to have a clean and safe area to do it.  I'm proud of them, and I know that even though it was a simple thing to do...it taught them a very valuable lesson that more than likely will be a part of who they are, and how they act for the rest of their lives.