Illegal dumping case study – Woollahra Council
Goal
Address dumping hotspots by fostering community pride through landscaping works, and using an education campaign to remind residents of appropriate waste disposal options.
Actions
- Identified key motivators and used these as the basic messages for an education campaign: dumped waste is unhealthy, attracts vermin and costs ratepayers money.
- Developed education kits and distributed them to households, complementing media releases and signage.
- Used landscaping works to improve the visual amenity of Oswald Street reserve, a key hotspot.
Top tips
- Focusing on open groundcover, landscape design can discourage dumping by restricting spots were waste may be hidden. Community pride in an attractive-looking public place can act as a further deterrent to ‘ruining’ areas through illegal dumping.
- Visible reminders such as signage and stickers can demonstrate council's presence and commitment to keeping an area clean as well as the risk of being caught doing the wrong thing.
- The education program significantly influenced residents’ behaviour and understanding of illegal dumping and other options for waste disposal. Twelve months after the project launch, illegal dumping in the area was reduced by half.