Growing Litter Problem in Alice Springs

Shadow Minister for Central Australia, Matt Conlon, has congratulated the newly elected Alice Springs Town Council and new Mayor, Damien Ryan, and is calling on them to put Alice's growing litter problem at the top of the Council's agenda.

"The litter in the streets of Alice Springs at the moment is nothing short of disgraceful,” says Matt Conlan, "and it seems to be getting worse by the week.”

"This is a Council issue and I urge the elected members to be pro-active about litter from the very beginning.

"Personally I'm in favour of the Council appointing a litter control officer to ensure there is concerted action to tackle this problem.

"Darwin City Council has such a position and it works well for the capital.

"The residents of Alice Springs pay their rates and are entitled to have clean streets.

"Litter strewn streets are more than a visual blight, they damage the civic pride people have in their town.

"It becomes a vicious circle as the litter levels grow more and more people wonder why they should care about their town.

"I'm also worried about the long term impact increasing levels of litter will have upon tourism in Alice Springs.

Visual impressions are critical to the memories people take away and at present we are creating a very poor impression for visitors.

"It's time for a new broom in Alice.”

2008-03-30