WARRNAMBOOL City Council is spending more than $21,000 collecting and disposing of illegally dumped rubbish.
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Levys Point, along the rail trail and the city’s parks and reserves are some of the sites where rubbish has been illegally disposed of over the past year.
The council has called on residents to report any dumping to police.
City infrastructure director Scott Cavanagh said thousands of dollars were spent annually dealing with the problem, and it was “a significant waste of the council’s resources”.
“If you look at the results of the recent Warrnambool 2040 survey, some of the most highly valued aspects of life in Warrnambool are its open spaces, parks and the natural environment. Illegal rubbish dumping not only spoils some of our most cherished community assets, it can have a significant environmental impact,” he said. “We find that a lot of the rubbish dumped could have easily been recycled, which is a real shame.”
Mr Cavanagh said when the council could ascertain who the culprits of illegal rubbish dumping where, it would not hesitate in issuing a fine.
“We also have the option to prosecute offenders in extreme cases,” he said.
“We need the community’s help to tackle this issue, so I would like to ask everyone, especially those who live near parks and reserves, to watch out for anyone illegally dumping rubbish and to report it either to council or the police immediately.”
The fine for dumping rubbish illegally is $317.