Council as a member of the Canberra Region Joint Organisation has partnered with the NSW Environment Protection Authority for the Hey Tosser campaign, which sends a clear message: tossing litter is not acceptable.

Council has installed ‘Hey Tosser’ banners in Batemans Bay and Narooma will distribute free car litter bags with brochures at service stations, visitor information centres and other visitor hotspots. The brochures detail how to report littering from vehicles to the EPA via an app or the EPA website.

Once an act of littering is reported the EPA can take action. Eurobodalla Shire Council rangers also issue fines for littering.

Council’s waste minimisation officer Belinda Wagner said littering was an ongoing issue in Eurobodalla.

“By partnering with other councils in the region the ‘Hey Tosser’ summer campaign is a coordinated approach that will reinforce the message throughout the region,” she said.

“The campaign aims to reduce rubbish in problem areas and educate the community and visitors about the impacts.

“Littering damages our beautiful natural environment, harms wildlife and sea life and costs NSW councils millions of dollars each year.

“Reporting a tosser helps raise awareness, reduces clean-up costs and deters people from littering, thus keeping our roadsides clean.”

According to the EPA, around 25,000 tonnes of litter is tossed in NSW each year. The highest volume of littered items in NSW is beverage and takeaway containers and print and advertising material, while the biggest hot spots are industrial sites, highways and car parks.

If you witnesses littering, including rubbish being thrown out of car windows, report it immediately to the EPA website, google ‘Hey Tosser’, or click the link on Council’s Waste Services webpage.

More information about Council’s waste services is at www.esc.nsw.gov.au or phone 02 4474 1024.