Why waste management is importantWaste that is not properly managed can create serious health or social problems in a community.
Pests and diseaseFood waste attracts pests and vermin, like feral pigs and rats. These pests and vermin can start or spread disease in the community. Piles of old garden waste and pieces of old furniture left in yards can shelter vermin and help them to breed. Dengue fever can be spread by mosquitoes that breed in anything that can hold water, like inside old car tyres, litter and even old palm fronds lying on the ground!
Illegally dumped pesticides, motor oil and other chemicals can contaminate land, creeks, and water supplies. People drinking or swimming in polluted water can get sick. Councils are required by law to clean up land contaminated with chemicals that they dispose of. Chemical clean-ups can be very expensive.
It is very important to keep human waste out of water supplies. Human waste (faeces, poo, kuma, urine, wee) contains diseases that make people sick. Human waste can get into the local water supplies from leaking septic tanks, releasing contaminated water from sewerage treatment plants, dirty nappies, leaking sewerage pipes and people using local creeks as a toilet.
People can get diseases like tetanus and leptospirosis if they cut or scratch themselves on pieces of metal, nails or glass. Children can be seriously hurt by playing with old car batteries or household cleaners that they find lying around.
Litter can be a problem in any community. Broken bottles and tins, for example, can cause injury if people don’t put them into bins. Mosquitoes and other vectors can breed in water trapped in old tyres and bottles.
People are more likely to drop litter in places that already have litter lying around. If they see litter on the ground, they may think it is OK for them to also throw their litter on to the ground. Without providing ways for people to stop littering, the whole community can be affected because they don’t want to live in a dirty town.
As well as community awareness campaigns on litter, councils can reduce litter by providing permanent or temporary bins in places such as:
The bins should prevent animals or birds scavenging in the rubbish, and keep out rain and wind. Do a search on the Internet or in your local telephone directory for rubbish bins. There are many companies around Australia who can provide you with different sorts of bins.
Messy yards and streets can have a bad affect on the attitudes of local people. It can also be hard to get people - such as nurses and tradespeople - to work or live in a community where the environment looks untidy or unsafe.
People can get seriously sick from badly managed waste problems. If they have to leave the community to spend time in hospital, the patient and their families can be badly affected by the separation.
If waste is managed well, the cost of fixing problems does not become a burden on council finances.
Good waste management for any organisation, including councils, should be based on reducing waste by following the Queensland Strategic Framework: Hierarchy and Principles. Solid and liquid wastes that can’t be reused or recycled should be disposed of in council rubbish tips.
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