The North Queensland shire is leading the charge in reducing its carbon footprint without talks of trading schemes or credits.

It has taken a far simpler approach and the community is lapping it up.

The latest development is set to eradicate the thousands of plastic drink bottles the Burke Shire has to get rid of each month.

It is an initiative of the forward thinking Burke Shire Council to stop the pollution of their shire with the thousands of plastic water bottles that are polluting the waterways, streets, parks and dumps all over Australia.

The Burke Shire is supplying everyone who wants one with a re-usable drink bottle supplied by the Southern Gulf Catchments to ward off a pollution problem.

The shire will also provide 20l bottles of treated drinking water at all public functions free of charge.

The Burke Shire has been a “plastic bag free zone” for the past five years and has won awards for being so.

The Council-sponsored cloth bags have become a common sight throughout the towns in the area.

Citizens agree they are way ahead of the Federal Government’s carbon trading scheme, and have already stopped the talk and are walking the walk.