# Clean Up Australia Day



## Happy (2 March 2008)

> From ABC, 2 Mar. 08
> 
> CLEAN UP AUSTRALIA DAY TARGETS 6,000 SITES
> 
> ...




For some reason I am not too keen on picking up somebody else’s rubbish.

If this campaign was supported by super heavy fines and strict policing of Keep Australia Beautiful idea I would be happy to give a hand.

It gets to the point that person caught littering answered with green from ear to ear, that he just makes Australia ready for next cleanup.


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## Happy (2 March 2008)

> From ABC, 2 Mar. 08
> 
> AUSTRALIANS CLEAN UP 7,000 TONNES OF RUBBISH
> 
> ...






> "The amount of rubbish collected on this, the 19th Clean Up Australia Day, was down on last year by about 3 per cent,"




This is not significant reduction to crow about.

I’d rather not see any rubbish at all, and if it has to be cleaned on this day, offenders could be forced to pick up rubbish.

Here I would be happy to help keep an eye on them, to nudge bludgers and book them free ticket for next year cleanup.


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## Julia (2 March 2008)

Unfortunately, it's not that simple, Happy.
How often do we see the Litter Police around when someone tosses rubbish on the ground?  I've never seen it.

This might sound a bit silly, but I always pick up rubbish on the beach and drop it in the bin on the basis of hopefully creating some good karma!!
Perhaps it might make up for some of the negative stuff I do without realising it.
Probably a bit fanciful on my part.


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## Happy (3 March 2008)

Unfortunately people who litter take advantage of the shrinking army of those who not only do the right thing but also wipe the bums of others.

What I noticed, it doesn’t get any better with passing time it gets worse.

On top of that now when I see something not right I am not too happy to reprimand, or even make comment.
I saw people ignored, kicked, punched spat on, just because asked politely to pick up something.

Nowadays offenders are so blatant that I just try to look the other way so I don’t get upset.

What I would like to happen is that CCTV is more used to pick those who accidentally drop something and don’t pick it up.

Offenders who are caught littering, even flicking the cigarette butt should be fingerprinted and taken saliva sample and pay for the costs necessary to process data, storage and few tests on butts picked up for example during Australia cleanup day.

Singapore doesn’t have chewing gum problem that we have, wander why?


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## noirua (4 September 2008)

Happy said:


> Unfortunately people who litter take advantage of the shrinking army of those who not only do the right thing but also wipe the bums of others.
> 
> What I noticed, it doesn’t get any better with passing time it gets worse.
> 
> ...



I've found that picking up someone elses rubbish just after they dropped it, without making any comment or gesture of any kind, does bemuse people. Not sure if it does any good though. 
I pickup rubbish because I probably left rubbish in the past and I'm doing the reverse now. 
A while ago I stayed in a village in France and it was absolutely immaculate. Not once did I see any litter at all. Adults took litter off small children so they wouldn't drop it and older children seemed to copy adults and take litter off children younger than themselves.
In a few places, people had put litter bins for others at the front of their property, quite novel I thought.


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## moXJO (4 September 2008)

Happy said:


> Offenders who are caught littering, even flicking the cigarette butt should be fingerprinted and taken saliva sample and pay for the costs necessary to process data, storage and few tests on butts picked up for example during Australia cleanup day.




Lets just tax smokers again and use the money for cleaning up.


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## gav (4 September 2008)

moXJO said:


> Lets just tax smokers again and use the money for cleaning up.




agree, and the same goes for alcohol, so many bottles and cans in my area


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## Wysiwyg (4 September 2008)

noirua said:


> I've found that picking up someone elses rubbish just after they dropped it, *without making any comment or gesture of any kind*, does bemuse people. Not sure if it does any good though.
> I pickup rubbish because I probably left rubbish in the past and I'm doing the reverse now.




I could have written that noirua.I did a Clean up Australia Day (the council even sent me a certificate in appreciation) three years ago and matey the rubbish that accumulates along the walkways, parks and beaches blew me out.
This year for four months, five days a week, I jogged up to a local lookout for exercise and every time, repeat every time, there is rubbish from the previous 24 hours.I picked up every evening.People go there, eat their lunch or dinner take-aways and dump the containers, utensils, cigarette stubs etc. out the car window.There are two bins that are never over-filled.

No doubt there are greater examples.

Like your work noirua.


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## Happy (4 September 2008)

Unfortunately irrespective of how much hard work you do there will be more next time and I just cannot accept that.

What I would really like to do is pick up somebody's deliberately left garbage and toss it in his or her pocket, car or living room.

It will never happen, but just a thought along Japanese way of thinking, to be nice to nice people and not nice to naughty ones.


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## Wysiwyg (4 September 2008)

Well Happy, i remember people are good at waste *mis*-management.Plastic, the convenience of conveniences, is by far the everyone waste.It begins in the home yet when choosing a wound up life (e.g. city dwellers) personal waste issues are someone elses problem.


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## noirua (16 December 2008)

Clean up Australia everyday.
[size=+2]"DO NOT LEAVE RUBBISH"[/size]


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## Happy (16 December 2008)

noirua said:


> [size=+1]"DO NOT LEAVE RUBBISH"[/size]




Nice bump, I forgot about this thread.

Did anything change for the better in your area?

I my area more and more rubbish: bags, bottles, and packages from fast food cigarettes, milk, drinks, and juices.

I think that recycling levy on all the packages would be the way to go, it would definitely make it easier for me to become casual garbage collector.

Fines would be great too, heavy fines well above severity of the offence.
We will never have lashes, so financial lashes have to do,   , well dream on.


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## noirua (17 December 2008)

Happy said:


> Nice bump, I forgot about this thread.
> 
> Did anything change for the better in your area?
> 
> ...



Like everything it costs money to have inspectors backed up by police enforcing the Law. A $200 on the spot fine should be enough and if it's not paid, a $400 court fine and $200 costs.
Throwing litter out of a car window is annoying.


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## MrBurns (17 December 2008)

Happy said:


> For some reason I am not too keen on picking up somebody else’s rubbish.
> 
> If this campaign was supported by super heavy fines and strict policing of Keep Australia Beautiful idea I would be happy to give a hand.
> 
> It gets to the point that person caught littering answered with green from ear to ear, that he just makes Australia ready for next cleanup.




Yes I love the way they "involve" the kids, make them feel guilty and send them out to pick up the filthy rubbish left by morons.

Clean up Australia Day, another **** idea with flawed logic by greenies I presume.


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## Wysiwyg (17 December 2008)

MrBurns said:


> Yes I love the way they "involve" the kids, make them feel guilty and send them out to pick up the filthy rubbish left by morons.
> 
> Clean up Australia Day, another **** idea with flawed logic by greenies I presume.




Yes it should be Clean Up Australia every Day.

It is through education by parents and teachers of our rebellious youths -- that a good habit can be perpetuated.

A visual reminder of where floating  plastics end up after being washed from the street down the stormwater drain and into the creeks, rivers and oceans.

*Please pick up a plastic bottle today and place it in a recycling (or any) bin.There is no shame in it.*


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## MrBurns (17 December 2008)

Wysiwyg said:


> Yes it should be Clean Up Australia every Day.
> 
> It is through education by parents and teachers of our rebellious youths -- that a good habit can be perpetuated.
> 
> ...




We all pick up our own rubbish but we pay enough taxes for the authorities to do the rest, no way would I allow my kids to do the work of the pigs that litter, it dangerous, filthy, degrading and just plain wrong.


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## Wysiwyg (17 December 2008)

MrBurns said:


> *We all pick up our own rubbish **but we pay enough taxes for the authorities to do the rest*




That is an interesting attitude and we all have an attitude toward other peoples rubbish.



> no way would I allow my kids to do the work of the pigs that litter, it dangerous, filthy, degrading and just plain wrong.




Aye, it`s all good when your sh!te don`t stink.


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## Happy (17 December 2008)

Wysiwyg said:


> *Please pick up a plastic bottle today and place it in a recycling (or any) bin.There is no shame in it.*




I don’t have problem with picking up rubbish, but I see it as loosing battle and unless it is backed up by heavy handed tactics to force change for the better, I’ll pick up rubbish sporadically and selectively only.


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## noirua (17 December 2008)

It's all to do with pride and they have that in towns and villages in France. If your town has litter all over the place, it is because the people have no pride in their town or in being an Australian.

If you never bother to pick up litter sometimes or press your children to do so. Then you are a bad Aussie, that is all there is to it.


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## MrBurns (17 December 2008)

Happy said:


> I don’t have problem with picking up rubbish, but I see it as loosing battle and unless it is backed up by heavy handed tactics to force change for the better, I’ll pick up rubbish sporadically and selectively only.




I.ll pick up a bit of rubbish along the way too but dammed if I'll let me kids spend a day sifting through other peoples **** and anyone who does is a weak tosser.

Thats different to what you said noirua, everyone should pick up a bit of litter but I object to organised all day sessions where kids are expected to clean up after society.


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## noirua (17 December 2008)

MrBurns said:


> I.ll pick up a bit of rubbish along the way too but dammed if I'll let me kids spend a day sifting through other peoples **** and anyone who does is a weak tosser.
> 
> Thats different to what you said noirua, everyone should pick up a bit of litter but I object to organised all day sessions where kids are expected to clean up after society.



There is some danger in picking up litter by hand as you can't be certain what little spider etc., may be there. One mistake could lead to a lifetime of suffering, as I remember hearing of a person who committed suicide some years after being bitten. Well organized it needs to be I suppose.


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## MrBurns (17 December 2008)

noirua said:


> There is some danger in picking up litter by hand as you can't be certain what little spider etc., may be there. One mistake could lead to a lifetime of suffering, as I remember hearing of a person who committed suicide some years after being bitten. Well organized it needs to be I suppose.




And needles of course, no kid of mine will be sent in to do that in the name of community spirit.


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## MrBurns (17 December 2008)

I suppose the big picture for me is I see that my generation has done a lot of damage to the environment and I think we should fix it not just flick pass it to the next generation.


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## Julia (17 December 2008)

Almost no litter in our town.  Council employs people who constantly drive around, park and pick up any litter.  I think this encourages the population and tourists to respect the tidiness and use the bins which are provided everywhere.

The only time I pick up anything is an item on the beach which has presumably washed up from careless/neglectful boaties and which could kill sea creature if swallowed.

One thing really does annoy me, though, and that's fishermen who fillet and clean their fish and then leave the skeletons lying in the shallows.  The tide washes them high up on the beach and they not only stink horribly but represent a danger to curious dogs who will have a go at eating anything.


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## MrBurns (17 December 2008)

I found London almost spotless, workers everywhere sweeping and cleaning made Melbourne look like a sewer.


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## noirua (18 December 2008)

MrBurns said:


> I found London almost spotless, workers everywhere sweeping and cleaning made Melbourne look like a sewer.



Hi MrBurns, I take it you mean London in Canada, or America. London in England is the worlds litter capital. "...,workers everywhere sweeping and cleaning.." - what a load of rubbish, balderdash.


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## MrBurns (18 December 2008)

noirua said:


> Hi MrBurns, I take it you mean London in Canada, or America. London in England is the worlds litter capital. "...,workers everywhere sweeping and cleaning.." - what a load of rubbish, balderdash.




What a load of crap, you're either joking or were in the wrong London.


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## noirua (18 December 2008)

MrBurns said:


> What a load of crap, you're either joking or were in the wrong London.



I don't want to have a row about this, as it's not a life and death matter really. I'm based at the moment in Kent and not really that far out from London, England, and have lived in many areas of London. The number of times I've gone into London over the years, I guess, is more than that of any Australian who has ever lived.


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## Wysiwyg (18 December 2008)

Travellers surveyed in March reckon it`s the dirtiest city in Europe Hmmff 

I suppose you can take what the tourists say with a grain of salt Hmmff 



> *London most expensive, dirty city in Europe*: survey
> 
> 12 March 2008, 13:11 CET
> (LONDON) - London is the dirtiest and most expensive city in Europe, while Brussels is the most boring, according to a survey published on Wednesday.
> ...


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## MrBurns (18 December 2008)

Wysiwyg said:


> Travellers surveyed in March reckon it`s the dirtiest city in Europe Hmmff
> 
> I suppose you can take what the tourists say with a grain of salt Hmmff




Maybe they haven't been to Melbourne but I found London very clean, noticably clean, exceptionally clean. 

Cleaners everywhere.


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## tigerboi (18 December 2008)

*Re: Clean Up our highways*

Now that weve got more daylight im able to see the rubbish on our highways in particular the hume highway which should be part of the clean up days.

People dont throw food/fruit out on the road thats how alot of roos & wombats get run over...trying to scoop up the scraps off the side of the road...headlights...bang

merry christmas...tb


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