To save money on trash removal, Sweden will use crows to pick up cigarette butts

To save money on cleaning costs, a city in Sweden is planning to use crows to pick up cigarette butts discarded on streets and squares. Accordingly, the crows of Södertälje would collect cigarette butts from the street and put them in a collection device, each time they would receive a portion of food.

 The crows of Södertälje will collect cigarette butts in the street.

'They will be wild crows participating on a voluntary basis,' said Christian Günther-Hanssen, founder of Corvid Cleaning, the company behind the project.

It is estimated that each year more than 1 billion cigarette butts are thrown on the streets of Sweden, accounting for about 62% of all waste. The city government of Södertälje once spent 20 million kronor (£1.6 million) to clean up the streets. But according to Günther-Hanssen, his method can save at least 75% of the costs associated with picking up cigarette butts in the city.

Currently Södertälje is preparing to carry out a pilot project before rolling out the operation across the city. It is known that the health factor of crows is still very important, considering whether it is suitable for cigarette butts waste.

Crows are easy to teach and also easier to learn from each other.

In fact, the New Caledonian crow belongs to the corvid family of birds, capable of reasoning like a 7-year-old child. Many studies have suggested that crows are the smartest bird best suited for this garbage job. 'They are easier to teach and also easier to learn from each other. At the same time, the risk of crows mistaking garbage for food is also lower."

'Currently, the cost of picking up each cigarette butt is around 80 öre, but for crows it is only about 20 öre. In the long run, this will save the city a lot of money."

Tomas Thernström, a waste strategist in the municipality of Södertälje, says the effectiveness of the pilot depends on financial viability. He also shared that: 'It would be good if this system also works in another environment. It's interesting that you can teach crows to pick up cigarette butts, but you can't tell humans not to throw trash on the ground."