Littering on rise in Singapore despite stiff penalties

Singapore - Littering is on the rise in Singapore, particularly among young people, despite stiff penalties including public shaming of repeat offenders, press reports said.

Singapore is famous for being one of Asia's cleanest and greenest cities, but in the first nine months of 2006, more than 4,000 citizens were caught littering, compared to 3,819 during all of last year.

Over half of the offenders caught this year were under 30, the mass-circulation newspaper Today reported, citing official figures.

Cases are rising despite Singapore's stringent deterrent measures including maximum fines of more than 3,000 US dollars and "corrective work orders" compelling repeat offenders to render up to 12 hours of clean-up work in full view of the public.

The National Environment Agency is conducting a behavioral survey to determine why litterbugs persist -- most of the young culprits are men -- and to fine-tune its response to the problem.

The agency and municipal councils spent about 70 million dollars a year cleaning up food hawker centers, government housing estates and public areas, the Straits Times reported. -- Agence France Presse

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