FAQs
What is litter?
Litter can be almost any material that is disposed of incorrectly. Litter includes cigarette butts and drink bottles dropped on the ground, fast food wrappers thrown out of the car window, poorly secured material from a trailer or grass clippings swept into the gutter. Litter can also be an abandoned vehicle or an abandoned part of a vehicle.However, litter does not include any gas, dust, smoke or material emitted or produced because of the normal operations of a building, manufacturing, mining or primary industry.
Apple cores are biodegradable. Is it still littering?
Even biodegradable items such as apple cores and banana skins are litter. These items can make a place look unattractive and disorderly, and can attract vermin. Biodegradable items such as food scraps can contribute to water pollution if these end up in a waterway, by causing algal outbreaks and sucking the oxygen out of rivers as they decay.If you are not able to place food scraps such as apple cores in a compost bin, they need to go in the litterbin. If there is no bin available in the immediate area, hang on to it until you can find a bin. You are just as likely to be fined for littering an apple core as you are for littering a cigarette butt or drink container.
What happens if I cannot find a bin?
People need to take responsibility for their own litter. If you have been eating your lunch in a park and cannot find a bin, you need to keep the litter with you until you find a bin. This is what the Queensland litter message is all about – Don’t Rubbish Queensland.However, if insufficient infrastructure is an issue in your area, you should take your litter home with you and raise the issue with the authority responsible for providing infrastructure.
Why is litter a problem?
Litter has environmental, social and economic impacts:- Litter pollutes our waterways and causes harm to important aquatic habitats, like coral reefs and seagrass beds;
- Animals mistake litter for food and become tangled in it. Litter kills hundreds of marine animals every year;
- Litter reduces the aesthetic appeal of public places;
- Litter can be dangerous- broken glass can cause injury to people and discarded lit cigarette butts have been linked with fires;
- Littered food scraps provide a food source for pests such as rats; and
- Litter prevention, education, collection and enforcement costs the community millions of dollars every year. Australian local and State Governments spend over $200 million a year just picking up litter.
Is it OK to litter when someone is paid to clean up?
No, it is not OK to litter on these occasions. The point of litter prevention and the messageDon’t Rubbish Queensland is to encourage people to take responsibility for their own litter. We cannot just expect someone else to clean up after us.
What are the main changes to the way littering offences are enforced?
Under the current enforcement system for littering, an authorised officer is required to stop and approach a vehicle from which littering has been observed. The authorised officer must obtain the details of the person who actually littered and issue the infringement notice to that person. The new laws amend the Environmental Protection Act 1994 to:- Extend the single on-the-spot $150 fine for littering with a range of littering offences and fines.
- Allow an authorised officer
to issue an infringement notice to the registered owner of a vehicle. - Allow an authorised officer to issue a clean up direction notice for illegal dumping of waste.
What are the fines for littering and illegal dumping?
Type of litter
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Examples
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Penalty to individuals
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If matter proceeds
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General littering
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Throwing a cigarette butt into the gutter or food wrappers, bus tickets or food items left on the ground.
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$150
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$1500
|
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Littering from a vehicle (including boats)
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Throwing a soft drink can, takeaway food packaging or plastic bag from a car or boat; or items falling off the back of a ute or a trailer as a result of an uncovered load.
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$225
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$2250
|
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Dangerous littering
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Any litter that can cause harm
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$300
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$3000
|
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Illegal dumping
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20L-200L
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Disposing of waste in an area that is not a dedicated waste facility. For example, large domestic items such as fridges and garden refuse and waste from construction, demolition and excavation activities.
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$300
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$3000
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>200L
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$1237
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$12370
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||
Illegal dumping- failure to clean up waste
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A person requested to clean up illegally dumped waste does not comply within the timeframe specified. This offence will proceed directly to court.
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–
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$7500
|
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Who are the authorised officers?
Currently officers from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and all local governments are authorised under the Act to enforce the litter provisions.Local government has primary responsibility for litter enforcement. Local government can appoint staff as authorised officers for the purposes of litter enforcement. These staff could be existing by-laws officers or could be dedicated litter enforcement officers.
The EPA currently has over 150 authorised officers. In addition, the EPA has retained enforcement powers and can delegate these powers to other departments for the specific purpose of litter enforcement.
Will the registered owner of a vehicle be liable for paying the fine?
The new laws consider the registered owner of the vehicle to have committed the offence in the first instance. This is similar to camera-detected speeding and red-light offences, where the owner of the vehicle receives the infringement notice in the mail.What if the registered owner did not commit the offence?
The Act safeguards the rights of vehicle owners. If the registered owner was not the person responsible for the offence, they can complete a statutory declaration within 28 days of receiving the infringement notice. The statutory declaration may contain an illegal user declaration, a known or unknown user declaration or a sold vehicle declaration.If a statutory declaration nominates a passenger as the offender, can that person nominate another passenger?
No. A passenger nominated as the offender in a passenger declaration cannot nominate another passenger as the offender.What type of information does an authorised officer have to complete on the observation form in order for the report to be valid?
A thorough observation report is required prior to issuing an infringement notice for littering from a vehicle. The report includes:- vehicle registration number;
- type of vehicle;
- description of vehicle;
- where and when the littering occurred;
- details of the offence including:
- type of litter (cigarette butt, bottle, paper);
- whether the litter was thrown, dropped or wind-blown;
- part of the vehicle the litter came from (driver, passenger, trailer).
What happens when the registered owner receives the infringement notice?
When the registered operator of the vehicle receives the infringement notice, there are several choices available to them.- The person can pay the penalty amount within the stated time.
- The person can elect to have the matter heard in Court within the time stated on the notice.
- Within the time stated, the person can complete one of four declarations nominating a person or action in relation to the vehicle at the time of the offence: an illegal user declaration; a known or unknown user declaration;
a sold vehicle declaration or
a passenger declaration. - Do nothing. An authorised officer will refer the offence to the State Penalties Enforcement Registry for follow-up enforcement action.
How do you know that the report is not malicious?
To minimise the risk of vexatious reporting, only trained authorised officers will issue an infringement notice. In addition, if the registered owner was not the person responsible
for the offence, they can complete a statutory declaration within
28 days of receiving the infringement notice.
Can a member of the public report littering?
No. Unlike Victorian legislation, Queensland legislation does not allow a member of the public to report a littering offence from a vehicle. The EPA is investigating the issue of public reporting.Can a person be fined if they put litter on top of a full bin and it blows away?
Yes. It is an offence if people deal with the litter in a way that it escapes, blows or washes away. Therefore, people must take responsibility for their rubbish and deal with it in a way that does not allow it to become litter. However, if insufficient infrastructure is an issue in your area you should take your litter home with you and address the issue with the authority responsible for providing infrastructure.What happens if a person chooses not to pay the fine?
If the owner of the vehicle does not respond within 28 days, an authorised officer will refer the offence to the State Penalties Enforcement Registry for follow-up enforcement action. Alternatively, a person may choose to have the matter heard in Court and would nominate this option when they receive the infringement notice.Can a person lose their licence for littering?
No. Littering is not a criminal offence. The State Penalties Enforcement Registry classes these offences as “simple” offences. This means that you cannot go to jail and you will not lose any demerit points for litter offences.Who will receive the infringement notice if an authorised officer observes a person littering from a hire company vehicle?
If an authorised officer observes a person littering from a hire company vehicle, the registered owner of the vehicle will receive the infringement notice. This is the same as speeding and red light offences. Vehicle hire companies should treat littering offences in the same way as speeding and red light offences. This would usually involve the registered owner nominating, through a statutory declaration, the person in charge of the vehicle at the time of the alleged offence. On receipt of the declaration, the authorised officer will reissue the infringement notice to the nominated person.Who will receive the infringement notice if an authorised officer observes a person littering from a public passenger vehicle?
To safeguard the rights of public passenger vehicle operators a vehicle littering offence only applies if the driver was the offender. If an authorised officer observes a passenger litteringthey will not issue an infringement notice.
However, if an authorised officer is satisfied that the driver committed the offence they will issue an infringement notice to the registered owner of the passenger vehicle. This is similar to speeding and red light offences. Public passenger vehicle operators should treat littering offences in the same way as speeding and red light offences. This would usually involve the registered owner nominating, through a statutory declaration, the person in charge of the vehicle at the time of the alleged offence. On receipt of the declaration, the authorised officer will reissue the infringement notice to the nominated person.
When will the new laws come into effect?
Parliament passed the new litter laws in October 2007. However, because there are significant changes to the litter laws, the Government has provided a three-month amnesty period before the laws are enforced. Litterbugs will receive a warning notice rather than a fine during the amnesty. The new laws will come into effect on the 11 February 2008.However, the amnesty period does not mean that authorised officers will be unable to enforce littering offences. The Littering offences under the Environmental Protection (Waste Management) Regulation 2000 will remain in force until the 11 February 2008.
Last updated: 23 January 2008
