Snitches get riches reporting cigarette butt littering in Miaoli County

The Miaoli County Environmental Protection Bureau announced today that it has already received reports of 10,994 littering cases of which 90% consisted of dropping cigarette butts via the “Incentive Measures for Violation of Waste Clearance Cases” system this year.

Two informants reported more than 800 cases of littering in a single month, and if every case results in a fine, each of those two informants will have earned more than NT$384,000 (US$13,672). The calculation is based on a fine of NT$1,200, of which the informant is eligible to receive half of the value of the fine minus a tax of 20%, making a total of NT$480 per case prosecuted.

The EPB said that the technology of secret recording and driving recorders has improved, and images provided by informants are very clear. The license plates and process of dropping cigarette butts from cars and scooters are recorded and the acceptance of cases for prosecution is quite high. According to statistics, 10 people have reported more than 50 cases in a single month, and two have reported more than 800 cases, the EPB said.

The EPB called on everybody to work together to maintain a clean environment.

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