By Belinda Nolan
BRIMBANK has become a hotspot for illegal littering, a report reveals.
Statistics released by the Environmental Protection Authority reveal 931 fines were issued in Brimbank for the 2007/2008 financial year, the third highest in the state.
The fines were dealt out to individuals littering from motor vehicles and dobbed in through EPA’s litter reporting program.
The figure marks an increase over the past two years, with 924 fines issued in 2006/2007 and 841 in the 2005/2006 financial year.
In 2007/2008 a total of 18,436 fines were issued across Victoria, more than doubling the figure of 8142 recorded for 2002/2003.
Melbourne City Council recorded the highest number of offences, with 1423 fines issued, followed by Monash City Council, with 1281.
EPA spokeswoman Ruth Ward said while Brimbank was ranked high in comparison to other western municipalities, the increased figures could be the result of more people willing to report offences, rather than an increase in overall littering.
“It’s a reflection of how willing people are to make reports,” she said.
“The people most likely to be doing the reporting are those who live in the municipality and the people actually doing the littering may not live there at all, they may just be driving through.”
Ms Ward said she would expect Brimbank to have a larger proportion of fines issued, given the size of the municipality.
“The fines are largely generated by population base,” she said.
“A regional area would have a smaller population and less road traffic, so they are likely to have fewer reports, as opposed to a municipality that has a higher population base and more road traffic,” she said.
Ms Ward said littering from cars usually attracted fines of either $227, or $113, depending on the nature of the rubbish.
She urged the community to continue to report littering, which costs local councils in Victoria about $70 million a year to clean up.
Anyone wanting to report a litterer can call 1800 LITTER, or log on to www.reportlitter.com.au
