CBCity likes its parks litter free

The City of Canterbury Bankstown’s litter program, We Like Our Park Litter Free, has kicked off for its sixth consecutive year, as part of Council’s continued efforts to keep the City clean over summer.

The program sees Council officers engage with and educate park users, from now until March, at Lambeth Reserve, Garrison Point Reserve, Kelso Beach, Lake Gillawarna, Flinders Slopes and East Hills Park.

Mayor Khal Asfour said park users will be encouraged to make a personal pledge to dispose of rubbish correctly before leaving and be provided with litter bags.

"Small actions can make a big difference," he said.

"We’ve already engaged with 30,000 park users over the past five years, received 5,500 verbal and 900 written commitments and distributed 7,500 garbage bags.

"That’s resulted in a 95 per cent reduction in litter and an 87 per cent reduction in hot coal dumpings.

"We’ve also installed 96 brand new litter bins and 12 hot coal bins in that time, so park users have every opportunity to do the right thing."

The ongoing campaign supports what more than 10,000 residents told Council in surveys, as part of the City’s 10-year visionary strategy, CBCity 2028.

"They want our City to be clean, green and sustainable by 2028, with healthy waterways and natural areas," Mayor Asfour said.

"But, to achieve that, we need to work together. It’s everyone’s responsibility to do the right thing."

Council is running a number of other litter-prevention programs, including:

We Like Greenacre Litter Free, an initiative which saw a 54 per cent reduction in litter from 2015 to 2018;The Clean Street, Clean Creek campaign, where Council joined forces with the Environmental Protection Authority, Strathfield Council and Cooks River Alliance, to help reduce litter entering Cooks River, via Cox Creek; andThe Cleanest Street in Lakemba competition, where Council, in partnership with the Canterbury City Community Centre, recognised and rewarded resident efforts, to help make Lakemba a cleaner and more sustainable place to live, work and enjoy.

For more information, visit cb.city/litterprevention