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Litter and community litter collection

Littering is a crime under the Environment Protection Act 1970 and the most visible sign of pollution. The most commonly littered items are cigarette butts, plastic bags, packaging and take-away food and drink containers.

Cleaning up litter is a direct financial cost to local and state governments and therefore to the community. The annual clean-up bill in Victoria costs the community around $80 million.

The Environment Protection Agency has more information about litter and the effect it has on our environment. If you see litter on the street, pick it up if it is safe to do so and put it in a bin before it enters the stormwater system.

Report litter from a vehicle

You can report litter thrown from motor vehicles to the EPA and they can issue an infringement notice to litterers. Fines range from $330 for an unlit cigarette or small piece of rubbish to $661 for a lit cigarette.

We support community members who safely collect litter within Merri-bek. You can find out how Council can help your litter collection efforts on our Community litter collection page.

  • Reporters can make litter reports to EPA online using the EPA web form. Further information about reporting litter from vehicles can be found on the EPA website

    When you report littering from a vehicle you need to provide the following details:

    • vehicle registration
    • vehicle colour, make and model
    • date, time and place of the offence
    • description of the litter, and whether it was thrown or dropped
    • who the offence was committed by (driver or passenger).

    Report littering 

Community litter collections

We support community members who safely collect litter within Merri-bek. 

We can collect any litter that you pick up at your event if you contact us in advance and complete the form below to arrange a pick up location.

Register your community litter collection event

If you plan to hold a community litter collection we encourage you to register your event by sending an email to Merri Creek Management Committee's (MCMC) Rapid Response to Litter Co-ordinator Julia Cirillo. 

Registering your event provides you with public liability insurance cover as well as access to a litter clean up kit, which contains gloves, high vis vests, bags, first aid equipment and data sheets.

MCMC can also assist with finding a safe site to collect litter and training as well as how to accurately record litter data.

Additional resources are available on the Friends of Merri Creek website such as a voluteer registration form and site safety checklist along with other information to help you keep safe when collecting litter.

Let Council know where you will be collecting litter

Please use the Community Litter Collection form to notify Council of your litter collection event, including Clean Up Australia Day events. Include your contact details and where you plan to leave your litter so that we know where to pick it up or can get in touch with you if we need to arrange a different collection point.

Community litter collection

Have you registered your event with the Merri Creek Management Committee?*

Have you registered your event with Clean Up Australia

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Join a community litter collection event

  • Are you proud of your home & passionate about cleaning up our suburb?
    Join us for a monthly meet up where we can focus on areas in Glenroy, Victoria that need our attention. By uniting together we can get more done.

    Join Clean up Glenroy's Facebook Page

  • Connect with other people in Pascoe Vale who want to get together to pick up rubbish and make Pascoe Vale Sparkle!

    Join Pascoe Vale's Facebook group to find out when the next collection event is on.

  • Connect with other people in Brunswick who want to get together to pick up rubbish and make Brunswick Sparkle!

    Join Brunswick Sparkle's Facebook group to find out when the next collection event is on.

    You can also subscribe to an email list to be notified of events.

     
  • The Friends of Merri Creek (FoMC) organise monthly litter collections along the Merri Creek. To stay up to date or join in on the regular monthly clean up, or for fact sheets, safety information and the steps to planning a litter clean up go to the FoMC litter community clean ups page.

  • We encourage community members, schools and businesses to participate in the annual Clean Up Australia Day events and can help by picking up collected litter. Please use the form above to let us know where you plan to leave your litter bags.

    Clean Up Australia also provide resources for litter collection events every day of the year. Register your site with Clean Up Australia to receive a Clean Up Kit containing:

    • 10-20 clean up bags (half white bags and half yellow recycling bags)
    • 4-5 pairs of gloves
    • A sharps container (if requested)
    • A hi-vis vest (a fashionable safety accessory that helps people identify the site supervisor)
    • Paperwork kit