'Breaking Bad'-themed anti-littering campaign leads to removal of more than 10.5 million pounds of trash

SANTA FE — A "Breaking Bad"-themed anti-litter campaign succeeded in removing more than 10.5 million pounds of trash around New Mexico last year, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's office announced Thursday.

The mountain of litter — equivalent to about 4.8 million kilos — was cleaned up by more than 19,000 volunteers, most of whom took part in organized cleanup efforts.

State agencies, community groups and public schools are among the groups that have taken part in more than 250 trash pickup challenges across New Mexico. The governor herself participated in at least one such event last year.

"New Mexicans showed up — more than 19,000 volunteers rolled up their sleeves and cleaned up their communities,” Lujan Grisham said in a Thursday statement. “That's what pride in our state looks like.”

Lujan Grisham first announced the "Breaking Bad Habits" anti-littering campaign in October 2024. The $3 million campaign has included billboards, signs on Albuquerque city buses and TV ads featuring stars of "Breaking Bad," which generated a cult following over its five seasons before concluding in 2013.

An initial ad featured Bryan Cranston, who played the show's protagonist Walter White, and a second Spanish-language installment released last year featured the Salamanca brothers, twin brothers referred to on the show as The Cousins.

The Governor's Office said the latest ad installment has been viewed nearly 25 million times and has generated hundreds of thousands of online engagements.

However, it's unclear exactly how much litter remains along New Mexico roadways and in other nooks and crannies of the state — and how much more might be dumped in the coming year.

State transportation officials said in 2021 the COVID-19 pandemic had led to an abundance of litter around New Mexico, in part because the state Corrections Department had temporarily halted the practice of having inmates clean up roadside trash. 

While littering is a petty misdemeanor punishable by a $50 fine under state law, the governor and other state officials have acknowledged that enforcing the statute is difficult.

In addition, recent proposals at the Roundhouse to prohibit retailers from using plastic bags have failed to win approval. However, the city of Santa Fe does have a plastic bag ban ordinance that also requires stores to charge a 10-cent fee for every paper grocery bag provided to customers. 

Dan Boyd covers state government and politics for the Journal in Santa Fe. Follow him on X at @DanBoydNM or reach him via email at dboyd@abqjournal.com