For the first time, a gathering of S.C. judges, advocacy groups, educators and law enforcement officers won't just talk trash - they'll try to find ways to stop littering permanently.

PalmettoPride, the Governor's Council on Beautification and Litter, is coordinating the first Litter Summit, a three-day event kicking off Monday, to discuss how South Carolina can get a better grip on litter.

Lawmakers, program directors and police officers will highlight programs that work and communities that are addressing litter problems.

They'll also discuss what's keeping some people from taking litter seriously.

"We want to be known as the 'zero tolerance for litter' state," said Rebecca Barnes, campaign coordinator for PalmettoPride.

There are indications that South Carolina's litter problem is getting better.

Twenty-four percent less litter was picked up on S.C. interstate highways in 2002 than in 2001, according to Palmetto Pride.

"People realize that people are watching," Barnes said.

But, she said, obstacles remain. Mostly, some people just don't think litter is a big deal.

Litter became an issue about four years ago, when University of South Carolina football Coach Lou Holtz encouraged state leaders to take on the state's trash-laden highways.

In 1999, PalmettoPride was created to lead the statewide effort to motivate and organize groups to eradicate litter.

Advocates say litter devalues neighborhoods, which then increases drug dealing, prostitution and vagrancy.

Litter also is bad for tourism and hurts the environment, they say.

"We associate litter with crime," said Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott. "If you've got a neighborhood where people who live there just don't care [about litter], it's a welcome to drug dealers."

To target litter, organizations have created education and awareness programs and are encouraging police departments to step up enforcement of litter laws.

They also are teaching communities how to organize local cleanups.

One successful program, the Litter Busters Hotline, started in October. Since then, 3,000 people have called the hot line to report violators, and in February alone, more than 1,000 people called the hot line.

The conference also will highlight police departments and county offices that are aggressively going after people who litter or dump trash illegally.

At the end of the conference, those participating will march to the Statehouse and lobby legislators to close permanently loopholes in litter laws.