MUSWELLBROOK Shire Council is reminding the community to think about litter during March and April as part of a concerted effort to help promote NSW EPA’s Hey Tosser! Campaign.
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The initiative aims to educate residents about the impacts of litter on our environment and inspire people to put their rubbish in a bin or take it with them.
Council has previously worked with NSW EPA to reduce the impacts of litter locally.
In 2015, it launched a project focused on addressing cigarette butts and general litter around Campbell’s Corner and along Hebden Road.
By implementing a multi-layered campaign using various forms of media, signage and the installation of bin infrastructure, a substantial decrease in the amount of observed litter was achieved.
“Littering is a preventable environmental problem,” council’s general manager Steve McDonald said.
“We know that shire residents want a clean and safe environment, so we’re calling on the community to register to report littering from vehicles and help to reduce littering in the Muswellbrook area.
“By having local residents report ‘Tossers’, it sends a strong message that littering is not tolerated in our community and if you litter you will get caught.”
As part of the Hey Tosser! Campaign, council encourages local residents to report littering from vehicles via the Report to EPA system.
“Since February 2015, more than 20,000 people across NSW registered with ‘Report to EPA’ to report Tossers littering from vehicles,” NSW EPA litter prevention manager Sharon Owens said.
“Over 26,000 reports of littering from vehicles were made, demonstrating that many members of the community care about keeping our environment clean and safe for everyone to enjoy.”
To report littering from a vehicle you need to:
• Have actually seen the litter being thrown, or blown, from the vehicle;
• Be able to provide the vehicle registration details and the location where the littering took place;
• Report the incident within 14 days;
• Make your report on the EPA website; and
• Be willing to attend court as a witness, if required.
To find out more about the Hey Tosser! campaign, visit www.epa.nsw.gov.au/heytosser or to “Report a Tosser!” visit: www.epa.nsw.gov.au/reporttoepa/
Report pollution and environmental incidents to Environment Line 131 555 (NSW only), TTY - 133 677 or http://ask.epa.nsw.gov.au/