Dob in a Dumper
A project to increase our community's awareness about illegal dumping, and how to report it.
A project to increase our community's awareness about illegal dumping, and how to report it.
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We love the large areas of native bushland in the Sugarloaf Valley, and wanted to do something to protect it from illegal dumping.
After inviting Council's ranger to speak at one of our meetings, we developed a project that would compliment and add value to the work of the Hunter RID (Report Illegal Dumping) Squad. Our project aimed to raise awareness of illegal dumping in the West Wallsend District, and educate the community about what they can do to help. We wanted to ensure all of our neighbours are informed about what to do if they come across illegally dumped materials, and the best avenue to report it. We developed an education pack with an information flyer and fridge magnet, promoting the Environment Protection Agency's online reporting website, www.ridonline.epa.nsw.gov.au, and reporting hotline, 131 555. Then with a team of about 8 volunteers, we delivered the packs to all households (about 2000) in our district, including Barnsley, Holmesville, Killingworth, Seahampton, ODonnelltown, & West Wallsend. We took the opportunity to include some fliers about our new Landcare group in our education pack as well. We received very positive responses from all residents we spoke with while delivering the education packs, and raised awareness about our group. It was also a great opportunity to meet some volunteers who don't normally come to our meetings, but were keen to help distribute the packs. Our media release resulted in an interview on 2NURFM, and we promoted the project on our facebook page as well. Ultimately, our project will contribute to increased and more timely reporting of illegal dumping, increased opportunity to prosecute dumpers, and a cultural change in our neighbourhood to ensure that illegal dumping is not tolerated. |
These are the flyers we distributed.
And the fridge magnets
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This project was funded through Lake Macquarie City Council's Environmental Sustainability Grants program.
