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Litter in Australia is prevalent in many areas and a significant environmental problem, particularly in the large cities of Sydney and Melbourne.
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2015) |
Litter in Australia is prevalent in many areas and a significant environmental problem, particularly in the large cities of Sydney and Melbourne.
An anti-litter movement began in 1969 in Victoria with the formation of Keep Australia Beautiful. Its major anti-littering campaigns "Do the right thing" and "Tidy Towns" became well known nationally. Today, the most vocal organisation is Clean Up Australia which holds a national clean up day.
There is currently no national legislation against litter, because the federal government is not authorised by the Constitution to legislate on such a subject.
It is considered the responsibility of either States and territories of Australia or Local Government Areas. All states and territories now have legislation against littering which may include fines that are enforceable by the police or other agents.
Littering is one of the reasons that around 130,000 tonnes of plastic end up in Australian waterways. [1]
In 2006, the most commonly littered item was cigarette butts, followed by items made from paper and cardboard with plastic items a close third. [2]
In 2015, Victoria was the state with most littering followed by Queensland. [3]
Litter generally describes something that has been put where it is not meant to be. [4] It can be solid or liquid and come from domestic or commercial use. [5]
In Victoria, the first legislation included the Environment Protection Act (1970) and later the Litter Act (1987).
The responsibility to enforce the regulation is divided between the EPA, Victoria Police, local governments, VicRoads, Parks Victoria and Melbourne Water. [2]
The Environment Protection Authority (Victoria) was the first to facilitate report littering online (based on vehicle registration details) by introducing the appropriate legislation and dispense fines. EPA was also the first in Australia to create a public litter reporting service in 2002. [6]
In 2015-16, more than 75 per cent of reports submitted to EPA Victoria by the public were about people discarding cigarette butts from their cars and 60% of offenders were male. Altona, Melbourne and Altona North were the three areas were the most littering was reported. [7]
Reporting pollution is a general environmental duty held by all Victorians and incorporated in Victorian law since 2018 and it includes reporting littering. [8]
As of 2024, fines for littering can go up to $769 for individuals and $3846 for corporations. [9]
Northern Territory followed Victoria and adopted the Litter Act (1972).
In South Australia the Container Deposit Legislation (1977) was introduced with the aim of reducing litter by encouraging recycling and remains the only state in Australia with this type of legislation. [10]
Anti-litter legislation was introduced to Western Australia through the Litter Act (1979).
Litter legislation was introduced to the Australian Capital Territory with the Litter Regulations (1993).
In Queensland, litter laws first came into place through the Environmental Protection Act (1994).
In New South Wales, legislation was introduced through the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997.
In Tasmania, anti-litter legislation was introduced through the Litter Act (2007).
Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. The word litter can also be used as a verb: to litter means to drop and leave objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups, food wrappers, cardboard boxes or plastic bottles on the ground, and leave them there indefinitely or for other people to dispose of as opposed to disposing of them correctly.
Clean Up Australia Limited is a not-for-profit Australian environmental conservation organisation. It is registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission.
Container-deposit legislation is any law that requires the collection of a monetary deposit on beverage containers at the point of sale and/or the payment of refund value to the consumers. When the container is returned to an authorized redemption center, or retailer in some jurisdictions, the deposit is partly or fully refunded to the redeemer. It is a deposit-refund system.
Kaniva is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the Western Highway, north of Little Desert National Park, in the Shire of West Wimmera local government area. It is located roughly 25 kilometres (16 mi) east of the South Australian border and 43 kilometres (27 mi) east of Bordertown. At the 2016 census, Kaniva had a population of 803. The town is commonly used as a rest point for those travelling between Melbourne and Adelaide. The Kaniva region has some rare flora and fauna. The rare south-eastern red-tailed black cockatoo is found in the region. The Shire of West Wimmera prohibits the felling of dead trees to ensure that they have adequate nesting sites.
There is no national law in the United States that mandates recycling. State and local governments often introduce their own recycling requirements. In 2014, the recycling/composting rate for municipal solid waste in the U.S. was 34.6%. A number of U.S. states, including California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Oregon, and Vermont have passed laws that establish deposits or refund values on beverage containers while other jurisdictions rely on recycling goals or landfill bans of recyclable materials.
Soil policy in Victoria refers to guidelines and regulations implemented by the state government of Victoria, Australia, to manage and protect the soil resources within its jurisdiction.
Cherry Lake is part of historical coastal wetlands in Altona, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The wetlands were converted to a lake with construction of retaining walls, levees and flow channels. The lake and surrounding reserve is an important wildlife habitat and popular recreational destination.
To protect the environment from the adverse effects of pollution, many nations worldwide have enacted legislation to regulate various types of pollution as well as to mitigate the adverse effects of pollution. At the local level, regulation usually is supervised by environmental agencies or the broader public health system. Different jurisdictions often have different levels regulation and policy choices about pollution. Historically, polluters will lobby governments in less economically developed areas or countries to maintain lax regulation in order to protect industrialisation at the cost of human and environmental health.
The Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) is Victoria’s environmental regulator. EPA is an independent statutory authority, established in 1971 under the Environment Protection Act 1970. EPA's role is to prevent and reduce the harmful effects of pollution and waste on Victorians and their environment.
The Guam Environmental Protection Agency is a government agency of the United States territory of Guam.
Container deposit legislation (CDL), also known as a container deposit scheme (CDS), is a scheme that was first implemented in South Australia in 1977 and over the decades has spread to the Northern Territory in 2012, New South Wales in 2017, the Australian Capital Territory in June 2018, Queensland in November 2018 and Western Australia in October 2020 and Victoria in November 2023. The scheme is due to commence in the last remaining state of Tasmania in early 2024.
Plastic bag bans in Australia were implemented in the early 21st century by the country’s states and territories, rather than through federal law. The intent of the bans is to help reduce the amount of plastic pollution in the environment, both in and around Australia and globally.
Recycling in Australia is a widespread, and comprehensive part of waste management in Australia, with 60% of all waste collected being recycled. Recycling is collected from households, commercial businesses, industries and construction. Despite its prominence, household recycling makes up only a small part (13%) of Australia's total recycling. It generally occurs through kerbside recycling collections such as the commingled recycling bin and food/garden organics recycling bin, drop-off and take-back programs, and various other schemes. Collection and management of household recycling typically falls to local councils, with private contractors collecting commercial, industrial and construction recycling. In addition to local council regulations, legislation and overarching policies are implemented and managed by the state and federal governments.
Waste management in Australia started to be implemented as a modern system by the second half of the 19th century, with its progresses driven by technological and sanitary advances. It is currently regulated at both federal and state level. The Commonwealth's Department of the Environment and Energy is responsible for the national legislative framework.
The RedCycle or REDcycle program was an Australian soft plastic recycling program started in 2010 by RG Programs and Services and suspended in 2022.
Lemon Springs or Lemon Springs Bushland Reserve is a 1400-acre property situated 15km south of Kaniva, Victoria, Australia, in the municipality of West Wimmera Shire Council. It is known as the biggest toxic dumpsite found in Australia.
Environmental law in Victoria concerns the laws and legal measures taken to protect human health and the environment and tackling Environmental issues in Australia happening in the state of Victoria, Australia.
Odour pollution in Australia is a type of pollution regulated by law and arises mainly in industrial areas.
The general environmental duty (GED) is a legal duty in Australian law stating that each person is responsible for their actions affecting the environment. To do so, they should take all reasonable measures to minimise the harm done to the environment before carrying out any activity.
