MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- According to one Milwaukee city official, the Milwaukee Police Dept. will intensify its enforcement of littering violations across the city.

Alderman Lamont Westmoreland issued a statement on Wednesday, Nov. 29 to express gratitude towards Chief of Police Jeffrey Norman and the MPD command staff for their active role in this initiative.

Westmoreland highlighted the importance of this enforcement, stating, "It will be a serious dose of reality for those who just can’t seem to put trash where it belongs." He emphasized the significance of the $500 base penalty for littering, believing it will alter behaviors and reduce littering's impact, particularly in the spring and beyond.

The MPD will implement a new protocol, detailed in a roll call memo for patrol officers, requiring them to engage with individuals caught littering. The strategy aims not only to penalize but also to offer an opportunity for behavior correction.

This initiative, according to Westmoreland, is a gradual process. "It might not be an overnight transformation in the behavior of some who just can’t stop littering, but I see the day coming when they say to themselves ‘It’s just not worth it.'"