Environment

Clean Cities

Clean Cities Strategy

Blacktown City Council is committed to providing clean and safe public places and spaces for all their residents to use and enjoy. The Clean Cities Strategy aims to improve public place amenity by building community ownership and care towards public places. The Clean Cities approach combines existing street cleaning services with community engagement initiatives to create enhanced and liveable public spaces within our urban areas.
The Clean Cities approach to public place cleanliness and safety is based on the idea that well-maintained and cared for areas tend to be treated with respect. When everyone plays their part in looking after public places they are more likely to be free from litter, graffiti and vandalism.

Clean Cities Objectives


  • To provide clean public places in the City of Blacktown City Council
  • To contribute to a reduction in anti-social public behaviour including littering, illegal graffiti and vandalism
  • To develop a sense of community ownership, wellbeing and pride of public places
  • To facilitate the commitment and understanding of partners involved in maintaining clean public places and spaces within our urban areas

tobacconist


Background to the Clean Cities


Public places that are clean, safe and accessible foster community participation to keep an area clean and well-maintained. Well-kept public places encourage a sense of local ownership, engender feelings of wellbeing and builds community pride.

In contrast, public places that are unclean and neglected will tend to attract litter, graffiti, anti-social behaviour and a higher threat to community safety. Research has identified that community members feel safer when their streets, parks, schools and communal areas are clean and maintained.


LITTER

In 2009, Council collected over 1,800 tonnes of litter in its street cleaning operation.
Cigarette butts are the most littered item >50% of all litter.
  • Litter and cigarette butts make our public areas look uncared for and dirty
  • Litter attracts more litter - people are less likely to litter in a clean area
  • Every cigarette butt and piece of litter harms our environment
  • Litter costs everyone - it costs local and state governments a lot of money to clean up litter

What is Council doing?

  • Carries out regular street sweeping, particularly in our shopping precincts
  • Provides litter bins in public reserves, retail precincts and in high-use pedestrian areas - bins are emptied and maintained regularly
  • Installing new enclosed litter bins with cigarette ashtrays for the easy disposal of cigarette butts
  • Investigates illegal dumping of waste
  • Conducts litter prevention and education campaigns
  • Clean Up Australia Day - Council provides volunteers with the support and equipment necessary to cleaned up local sites including schools, bushland and waterways every year
  • Funds "Keep Australia Beautiful" to deliver waste and environmental education in primary schools in the Blacktown area (incorporating the negative impacts of littering)
  • Coordinates and delivers Community Pride Programs that empower the community, with the assistance of Council, to improve their environment e.g. Adopt-A-Road
  • Community Law Enforcement Officers issue Environmental Infringement notices for littering offences under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997.

GRAFFITI & VANDALISM

What is Council doing?

  • Carries out graffiti prevention projects with other partners to prevent graffiti by supporting the production of legal aerosol art murals
  • Graffiti Removal Team partnerships which utilise offenders from Probation and Parole and Juvenile Justice to remove graffiti throughout the City
  • Carries out graffiti removal on Council property
  • Provides free graffiti removal materials to residents and volunteer organisations to remove graffiti from residential property
  • Graffiti Help Line which provides graffiti management advice to commercial property owners
  • Developing a Illegal Graffiti Management Policy and Action Plan.

dry cleaners

COMMUNITY PRIDE, SAFETY & ENGAGEMENT

What is Council doing?

  • Developing and delivering a trial Business Pride Project Shop local to build partnerships between Council, business traders and Chambers of Commerce to promote pro-social behaviour and improve the amenity in three retail precincts.
  • Ongoing liaison with private shopping centre operators to assist in the maintenance of shopping centre amenities
  • Retrofitting CBD street litter bins with external cigarette butt bins
  • Auditing and reviewing Council's cleansing practices in commercial and retail centres
  • Implementation of the Blacktown City Vandalism Report Reward Program.


WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?

  • Dispose of your litter and cigarette butts in a bin
  • Pick up litter when you see it
  • Get involved in a local community pride group dedicated to keeping your area clean and beautiful e.g. Adopt-A-Road
  • Participate in annual events such as Clean Up Australia Day - there is a local group near you
  • Report anti-social behaviour such as vandalism, graffiti and illegal dumping to Council on 9839 6000.

SHOP LOCAL GUIDES

The "Shop Local" guides are full colour brochures that have been distributed to local households in Mount Druitt Village, Riverstone and Lalor Park.

 Lalor Park Brochure  (2361 kb)

 Mt Druitt Brochure  (2445 kb)

 Riverstone Brochure  (2185 kb)