LITTERING and illegal dumping will, as of May 1, become costly misdeeds for perpetrators, with fines of up to $10,000 for offences under the National Solid Waste Management (NSWMA) Act of 2001.

Penalties for the offences – which include throwing litter in a public place, breaking bottles or other glass in a public place; littering property owned by others; defacing walls, fences or buildings; displaying posters in areas not intended for them and urinating in public – will amount to $2,000, $3,000, $5,000 and $10,000 respectively.

Much like the existing road traffic regulations, if offenders under the NSWMA Act fail to pay their fines at any of the NSWMA offices within 21 days, they will have to answer to the charges in court.

The new regulations were promulgated by the Fixed Penalty notice, which became effective January 1.

The information was revealed at a recent media launch of the waste agency’s anti-litter ticketing system at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston.

Acting executive director of the NSWMA, Christopher Powell, told the launch that although fines would be implemented, it was a “last resort” for the agency. He indicated that the agency would rather have individuals comply with the rules than violate them and pay for it. Against this background, he noted that a rigorous public education campaign was critical to encourage compliance and to ensure the success of the initiative – which will initially be introduced as a pilot project in Kingston, Montego Bay and Portmore for three months.

“We cannot roll out a programme of this magnitude [without] educating the people, so we will be embarking on a massive education campaign,” Powell said. He said that the agency would employ the mass media, in addition to holding community meetings in order to get the message out that littering is not cool.

“We feel it’s a step in the right direction. If we nip the small deviations in the bud, we will curb the larger monster of crime,” Powell said.

Minister of state in the Ministry of Local Government and Environment, Harry Douglas, endorsed the initiative tagged, ‘Let’s Keep it Clean’ as a means of elevating civic pride among the citizens of Jamaica.

“We have to keep Jamaica clean, we have to stop litter. We take pride in our homes looking well [and] we must also take pride in our country,” he told the Sunday Observer after the mid-morning function. “I believe if you throw it at the pocket, it will hurt once they see that you are serious.”

Mayor of Portmore, George Lee, in whose municipality the pilot will also take off on May 1, also lamented the deterioration of civic pride and the reduction in public order in the country. The mayor said littering had reached epidemic levels and suggested that one solution was the revision of laws to give more power to local authorities.

Under the act, traffic wardens, public health inspectors, members of the Jamaica Constabulary and the Island Special Constabulary Force, as well as persons appointed under the National Resources Conservation Authority Act or its regulations, can enforce the law by issuing tickets and fines to violators.

After the initial three-month period, the state-run NSWMA will assess the anti-litter ticketing system before introducing it to other parishes.