Latrobe City has seen a significant reduction in litter and illegal dumping across the municipality, reflecting the success of recent Council initiatives aimed at improving the cleanliness of public spaces.

At the May Council Meeting, successful measures were noted by Council including the expanded hard waste collection, CBD cleaning program, hot spot inspections and cleaning and supporting both the container deposit scheme and community undertaking litter control.

As a result, the number of litter and illegal dumping reports dropped from 1,100 in 2022 to 573 in 2024.

Council also acknowledged the additional work required along arterial roads managed by the State Government. Advocacy efforts will be undertaken to call for an uplift of their litter collection and review of maintenance schedules.

Latrobe City Council Mayor, Councillor Dale Harriman said the results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proactive approach to litter management.

“This dramatic drop in litter and illegal dumping reports shows that our targeted efforts are making a real difference.

“We know our community cares about the environment and the appearance of our public spaces, and we are proud to share that commitment which we are actively addressing,” said the Mayor.

Latrobe City Council Deputy Mayor, Councillor Sharon Gibson moved the motion at the Council Meeting.

“We all know we have such issues with litter on our roads, a lot of it is on Regional Roads Victoria roads, and for us to actually go and pick it up – we can’t just do that – we have to get permission.

“Many of us would like to pick up the rubbish, but we cannot legally without Regional Roads Victoria’s sign off. It’s leaving many of us really frustrated having to drive past without taking any action – and having so much unnecessary red tape holding us back.

“I’m hopeful that these measures will be more successful and we will actually have a cleaner city,” said the Deputy Mayor.

Published 5/6/2025