How to pack out picnic waste in Gran Paradiso
Even fruit peel goes back down the valley in your pack in Gran Paradiso National Park. Decide where scraps will go while making lunch at home, particularly if you are packing anything wet or sticky.
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Choose a container that works on the way back
Once you have eaten a sandwich, its empty lunch box can hold a banana skin. Pack a small sealable bag for sticky wrappers and keep used tissues separate. If the lid comes loose when you slide the box into your pack, switch containers before you leave.
Take seeds, cores and crumbs with you
The park explains that food waste can take a long time to break down in the mountains. Human food can also encourage wildlife to approach popular picnic spots. Peel fruit over the open box and check the ground where you sat before setting off again.
Carry the bag to the collection point
Stashing a bag behind a rock for your return trip also falls under the park’s ban on temporarily leaving waste. Seal it and carry it to a collection point in the valley or take it home. In a group, check under the edges of the packs too, where a small wrapper can disappear during lunch.
Your plan, step by step
- Take a lunch container you can close afterwards
- Keep a bag for wrappers handy
- Collect fruit scraps and tissues
- Carry waste to a collection point or home
Continue planning your trip
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