The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change has stepped up enforcement under its national anti-litter campaign, with new Litter Prevention Officer enforcement training held today.

Permanent Secretary for Environment and Climate Change Sivendra Michael says the three-year campaign, launched last year, focuses on five key pillars, including behavioural change and stronger enforcement.

The Ministry aims to train five-hundred litter prevention officers by June 2026.

So far, two-hundred-and-eighty-seven officers across government have been trained, with forty-three police and Land Transport Authority officers trained last week, and a further thirty-six officers from the Central Division trained today.

The training equips officers with enforcement tools, including identification and fine books, allowing them to issue penalties under the Litter Act 2008 for irresponsible littering.

“As I mentioned during my remarks, enforcement comes hand in hand with the policy tools. You can have a good regulation and a good Act, but if you are not able to enforce that, then you have a system that does not work.”

Michael says strong legislation must be supported by effective enforcement, stressing that laws are meaningless without proper implementation.

He says in the last financial year alone, the Lautoka City Council issued more than six-hundred-and-forty littering fines, while Nasinu recorded over four-hundred cases.

The Ministry also addressed public concerns surrounding proposed waste-to-energy projects, clarifying that its role is purely regulatory.

Michael says any such development must undergo the Environmental Impact Assessment process, including public consultation, before approval is considered.

Meanwhile, reviews of waste, recycling and littering regulations are underway, with plans to introduce tiered penalties based on the severity and environmental impact of different waste types.

Further national consultations are expected before the proposed amendments are submitted to Cabinet.

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