Page 522 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 19 February 2020
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(c) that the ACT Government has available a range of penalties under the Litter Act 2004 and the Dangerous Substances Act 2004 that are seemingly not enforced;
(d) that the ACT Government is also able to deploy the city rangers to inspect and enforce this legislation, but that they need to be resourced effectively to conduct preventative activities;
(e) that the slow rollout of once a year kerbside pickup for bulky waste is unlikely to resolve this issue given many of the dumped items include clothing and smaller household objects. Furthermore, given the new scheme is only once a year and requires a booking, it is unlikely to deter illegal and ad hoc activity;
(f) that current complaint mechanisms through Access Canberra are arduous for residents and do not seem to result in effective response times; and
(g) that sadly these complaints are not unique to Yerrabi but, in fact, are occurring throughout the ACT; and
(2) calls on the Government to:
(a) acknowledge that litter and illegal dumping is of growing concern to Canberrans;
(b) review what resources and authority the city rangers currently have to enforce penalties relating to litter and illegal dumping and whether they are adequate to address the issue;
(c) review the current reporting process for residents to make a complaint and assess the viability of a more user-friendly and efficient process; and
(d) report back to the Assembly on these matters no later than 18 June 2020.
Today I want to bring to the Assembly an issue that is very real and very frustrating for the residents of Yerrabi. Illegal dumping is a blight on our local communities. It makes our shops look ugly and our neighbourhoods look neglected. It makes residents feel frustrated and business owners feel taken advantage of.
We all know that, since 2010, residents in the ACT have had their rates triple, yet the same cannot be said for the quality of basic services. Local businesses have also had their rates skyrocket under this government and yet there is no associated increase in the maintenance of commercial precincts. The basic expectation from the community is that the government should effectively manage rates, roads and rubbish. Sadly, this tired Labor government cannot hit any of those targets. Illegal dumping is happening more and more around our suburbs.
The question I keep asking is: why are we paying more but getting less? The answer is that ACT Labor, this tired Labor government, has lost any sense of direction and our communities are the ones that are suffering. I am sure every person here can tell a story about illegal dumping. We all know a site in our suburbs, a street, a block, a park that is often littered with rubbish. Sadly, for me in Yerrabi, there are several. The abuse of charity bins in the Gungahlin town centre has been of particular concern for some time. Piles of rubbish often rise up around the bins, as goods left are either in not good enough condition or damaged from being left out in the weather.
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