ELMIRA, N.Y. (WENY) -- Cigarette butts, food containers, soda cans, and diapers. These are just some examples of litter, recently noticed to be on the rise, near the Chemung River in Elmira. 

As summer winds down and the fall foliage season moves in, community leaders in Elmira are reminding the public to keep nature healthy too. From diapers to cigarette butts, paper products and more, littering appears to be increasing in and around boat launches throughout Chemung County.

"The fish that I'm catching out of there have those poisons that are in those cigarette butts too so it's not good for anybody. I'm asking folks, take your cigarette butts, take them home but them in the car don't throw them here. Don't litter anywhere because they float and they're going to end up in the river which is our water supply, your drinking water," says Jim Pfiffer, Executive Director of the Chemung River Friends. 

Even just a little amount of trash can have long-term lasting impacts. 

"The filters of cigarette butts also have plastic fibers in those so it's important to remember that those cigarette butts aren't just being degraded when you throw them away and into the environment and they are actually staying around for years to come," says Michelle Larimore, Community Engagement Coordinator for the Southern Tier Tobacco Awareness Coalition (STTAC). 

There is action you can take to help further the protection of the environment through STTAC. Information can be found here: http://www.sttac.org/