The issue of litter – including toilet paper – being left being behind at rest stops and camping areas has once again been thrust into the spotlight.
The ABC reports that authorities along Western Australia’s south coast are warning of serious financial penalties for roadside dumping after campers left piles of razors, rubbish and an excrement-filled toilet by a highway.
It says a rest stop between Albany and Denmark is regularly left in a terrible state
WA truck driver Glenn ‘Yogi’ Kendall told the ABC the situation highlighted declining etiquette and courtesy among some road users.
“The long and short of it is horrible …. if we pull up at night and we’re trying to cook a feed in a barbecue and get stuff out, you’re just walking around people’s filth because they are just trash,” he said. “No-one’s got a shovel anymore, no-one goes into the scrub base … it’s disgusting.”
'No one's got a shovel any more!' PIC: Cizza
Last month, the City of Albany implemented a crackdown on illegal campers, but Mayor Greg Stocks says he does not believe the tougher policy has pushed some campers away from the towns and into rest areas with fewer amenities.
“I don’t think so, logically you’d say yes, but when we had an issue at the waterfront at Christmas time and we moved people on, they just simply moved,” he told the ABC. “When you’ve got TikTok and WikiCamps where people share information really quickly in that network they’ll just go somewhere else that’s not being policed.”
Mr Stocks said people who chose to stay overnight at the rest stops were doing so illegally but council rangers had no authority to police the location managed by Main Roads.
Main Roads’s Great Southern regional director Andrew Duffield told the ABC it was trying to address the issue.
“Fines are applicable for illegal dumping, and they’re fairly significant fines, up to $62,000 for individuals or $125,000 for businesses,” he said.
However, it is clear that the problem goes beyond rogue campers.
Mr Duffield told the ABC that while there was a measurable correlation between illegal dumping and busy holiday periods, much of the dumping included items from local residents.
“People are using those areas as an opportunity to dump household rubbish,” he said. “They’re [dumping] beds, washing machines, tyres, oil, asbestos, even from time to time household waste.”
And he warned that illegal dumping – whoever was behind it – could have the effect of deterring drivers stopping as regularly as they should and that could have potential safety implications.
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When overseas backpackers or anyone who hires a motorcar, they shud be issued with some instructions, a shovel and liable penalties.
I know they’re not the only ones..but its a start..!!
During our 170,000kms of travelling over the past 14 years we’ve found that almost all overseas backpackers use toilet blocks.
We’ve seen plenty of Aussies including grey nomads pooping in the bush though. LOL.
We saw one elderly Bushtracker caravan owner poop right next to a picnic table at Goolgowi Rest Area which has no toilets.
Why didn’t he use the ensuite in his caravan?
Over the past 14 years of our retirement travels we have pretty much seen it all at Rest Areas.
RV owners emptying their cassettes, RVers, truckdrivers & back packers poo/toilet paper spread through the surrounding bush.
Things like oil, chemicals & stock poo dumped on the bitumen parking area.
Filthy disgusting toilets if there is one, thats if it has not been vandalised.
Rubbish, cans, bottles, plastic, mattresses, sinks, tyres, you name it we have seen it.
We think that a large proportion of people dont care, it isnt their backyard.