Illegal Dumping

The Township of Langley currently uses the Bylaw Offence Notice system for the issuance of bylaw offence notices; and the maximum penalty under this system is $500.

The Bylaw Offence Notice system allows the Township and recipients to deal with disputes at the local level, rather than through the Provincial Court System, therefore reducing the costly, time-consuming process associated with disputing violation notices through the Provincial Court System.

The new Solid Waste Management Bylaw 2016 No. 5200 , approved by Council in May 2016, states that a resident can be fined for miss-management of waste. This means that dumpers do not necessarily have to be caught in the act to be fined. Evidence pertaining to the generator of the waste may be used in enforcing the management of solid waste.

The letters in the word idiot stand for “illegal dumper in our Township.” One of the recommendations of the Litter and Illegal Waste Management Strategy was to develop a marketing campaign for litter and illegal waste awareness. These signs draw attention to the issue, while alerting possible offenders that their waste is under investigation. Following public consultation, the public told us they wanted a marketing campaign that was direct, engaging, and honest. The #idiot campaign directly speaks to illegal dumpers, engages the public through humour and shock-and-awe, and honestly portrays the frustration many residents feel when they come across illegally dumped material in our Township.

#idiot was launched in June 2016 consisting of ads in movie theatres, newspapers, local facilities, and on buses and Township vehicles. While the campaign engaged the public on the issue of illegal dumping, every marketing campaign begins to lose momentum over time.

Yes! Following the launch of the education campaign, we saw 77 fewer incidents of illegal dumping when compared to the year prior. Increasing awareness of the issue and disposal options, as well as letting offenders know their waste is under investigation helps reduce the frequency of illegal dump sites.

The #idiot campaign may surprise some families with its word choice. Although the word idiot may be unusual language for a municipal campaign, its bluntness and humour works effectively with the message of illegal dumper in our township. Some families may consider idiot to be an inappropriate word for their children to repeat; this aligns with the campaign’s goal to ensure that children, parents, and other individuals understand that illegal dumping and littering is unacceptable – like repeating a “bad word”.

Children are often some of the best educators in a community but the Township acknowledges that it is not always appropriate to teach adults and children in the same manner. As the Township continues to work with local schools on anti-litter and illegal dumping education, a modified version of the campaign without the word “idiot” will be introduced in elementary schools.

Take a look at the Litter and Illegal Waste Management Strategy , or pick up a hard copy at the Civic Facility (20338 65 Avenue) or Operations Centre (4700 224 Street)