Whakatāne District Council now has the ability to issue a $200 or $400 fine for litter bugs.

At last week's full council meeting, councillors voted to implement an infringement regime for illegally dumped rubbish.

Local councils are allowed to issue fines of up to $400 under the Litter Act 1979, however, it requires the council to resolve to adopt an infringement regime.

Until now, the only powers council officers in Whakatāne had to penalise people for fly tipping was to file charges through the district court.

While this could result in a fine of up to $5000, it took up staff time and legal expenses, making it suitable only for the most serious offences.

At a meeting of the council's infrastructure and planning committee last month, a blanket fine of $200 was suggested to committee members.

During discussion, it was suggested that a larger fine be made available to staff for repeat offenders or for larger-scale offences.

A report to councillors at last Thursday's meeting pointed out the many administrative difficulties of issuing fines based on the nature or volume of the material being dumped, including having to weigh the material and the extra responsibility it would place on compliance officers.

It also said, in addition to the fine, if someone was caught dumping rubbish, they could also be charged with the costs of clean-up, including transfer station fees.

A larger fine for a repeat offender was much easier to distinguish.

A $200 fine for a first offence, whether litter is deposited in a public or a private place without the owner's consent, was recommended and voted for by councillors, along with a $400 fine for a second offence.

A $200 fine could also be issued for failure to comply with an officer's direction to clean up litter.

-Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air.