(1) A person must not deposit litter in any public place except in a receptacle that the owner or controller of the public place has provided for litter.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding –
(a) if the litter consists only of a single item of personal litter, 2 penalty units; or
(b) if paragraph (a) of this penalty does not apply but the litter does not exceed 55 litres in volume, 20 penalty units; or
(i) 200 penalty units in the case of an individual; or
(ii) 500 penalty units in the case of a body corporate.
(2) A person must not, in a public place, deposit litter in any receptacle provided for litter if it is, or reasonably ought to be, evident to the person that –
(a) from markings on the receptacle or elsewhere at the public place, the receptacle is not a suitable receptacle for litter of that nature; or
(b) from the nature of the litter or receptacle, the receptacle is not a suitable receptacle for the litter; or
(c) the receptacle is already full; or
(d) the receptacle has insufficient space, or remaining space, to hold the litter; or
(e) the receptacle is undergoing repairs or maintenance, is sealed or is otherwise temporarily unavailable for use as a receptacle for litter.
Penalty: Fine not exceeding –
(a) if the litter consists only of a single item of personal litter, 2 penalty units; or
(b) if paragraph (a) of this penalty does not apply but the litter does not exceed 55 litres in volume, 20 penalty units; or
(i) 200 penalty units in the case of an individual; or
(ii) 500 penalty units in the case of a body corporate.
(6) Subject to subsections (7) and (8) , every offence under this section is an offence of strict liability.
(7) It is a defence in proceedings for a minor offence under this section if the defendant establishes that the deposition of the relevant litter was accidental and the defendant took reasonable steps to retrieve it.
(8) It is a defence in proceedings for an offence under this section, other than a minor offence, if the defendant establishes that –
(a) the deposition of the relevant litter was accidental and the defendant took reasonable steps to retrieve it; or
(b) the deposition of the relevant litter was done in good faith in urgent response to a civil or other emergency in order to prevent or minimise a genuine risk to the safety of persons or property; or
(c) the deposition of the relevant litter was an unavoidable consequence of a lawful activity.
(9) For the purposes of subsection (8)(c) , a consequence is taken to be unavoidable if at the relevant time there was no reasonably practicable way of avoiding it.
(10) Nothing in this section applies to, or prevents –
(a) the deposition of litter in accordance with any authority lawfully given by or on behalf of the State Crown; or
(b) the deposition of litter in a municipal area in accordance with any authority lawfully given by or on behalf of its council; or
(c) the deposition of litter in any place if there is lawful authority to do so; or
(d) the placement in a public place of a council-supplied receptacle, containing litter from a private property adjacent to or near that public place, for the litter to be removed by and in accordance with the publicised protocols of a council's routine garbage collection or recycling service; or
(e) the placement in a public place of green waste, from a private property adjacent to or near that public place, for removal by and in accordance with the publicised protocols of a council's green-waste collection service; or
(f) the placement of unwanted household items, from a private residence adjacent to or near that public place, for removal by and in accordance with the publicised protocols of a council's periodic clean-up or recycling service.
(11) In this section –
markings includes words and signs;
minor offence means an offence involving only a single item of personal litter;
nature, of litter, means its nature having regard to –
(a) its composition; and
(b) its size, shape and volume; and
(c) its odour, viscosity, combustibility and perishability; and
(d) its potentialities to cause, in either its instant or a transformed state, a safety, health or environmental hazard;
personal litter means litter consisting of, or like, any of the following:
(a) a bus, movie or parking ticket;
(b) an automatic bank teller docket or sales receipt;
(c) a cigarette butt or piece of chewing gum;
(d) a lolly wrapper, crisp packet, sandwich container or food sachet;