Page 532 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 19 February 2020
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enforceability and efficiency of how the government deals with a range of issues, such as abandoned vehicles, cigarette litter, littering on building sites, how we deliver penalties and how the ACT government can provide services for household collection.
As one of the members for Yerrabi, I regularly speak to constituents who have raised the issue of littering and illegal dumping in Gungahlin. I also hold regular clean-ups in Gungahlin with members of the community, because we love living in Canberra and we want it to be a place we can all be proud of.
The ACT government acknowledges that cleaning up after illegal dumpers is a financial burden on ratepayers. The better suburbs statement identified that household waste and recycling, including bulky waste, are often dumped illegally. In the 2016 election, ACT Labor committed to introducing a bulky waste collection service in Canberra, and we are now delivering on this commitment. I am incredibly pleased that Gungahlin will be the first suburb to receive the rollout of bulky waste bins in the ACT. I regularly talk to constituents who are incredibly pleased to hear about the new bulky waste collection services and are greatly looking forward to this new service in Gungahlin.
The bulky waste collection will allow residents to dispose of household items in a sustainable and accessible way and reduce illegal dumping. What it will allow is for Canberrans who may not have a trailer to dispose of items in a legal and environmentally friendly way. Residents can store some items in their garage and during the collection time can use the service. As the government looks to enforce greater compliance with illegal dumping activities, providing bulky waste collection ensures that Canberrans have a free, legal method for disposing of bulky waste.
The ACT government’s amendments to the Litter Act 2004 introduce an escalating framework where penalties increase with the volume of litter deposited. It will increase some fines for littering, which will send a strong message to residents in Canberra. For example, fines will escalate if you are caught dropping items like a cigarette or a syringe, with the introduction of a $500 fine. The new laws will also see an increase to the fine for dropping small items like a bus ticket, a light rail ticket or a coffee cup.
Offenders will now face a $150 fine, instead of $65, if caught doing the wrong thing. The increase in these fines sends a clear community message from the government that littering will not be tolerated and a signal that we value well-kept and tidy public spaces. The government’s amendments also made it easier to enforce littering and dumping, with infringement notices able to be issued to the owners of vehicles involved in illegal dumping, similar to speeding fines.
New provisions allow rangers to link an offence to the operator of a vehicle, where the offence is committed after exiting or before entering a vehicle. That is why, where someone drops a cigarette butt and refuses to give their name and address or becomes aggressive to a ranger before getting into a vehicle and driving away, the offence may be directed to the owner of the vehicle. As a result, our rangers can now target littering and illegal dumping offences in greater confidence, knowing that they have added protections when issuing infringements.
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