Roadside dumping is once again on the rise, and locals in the Mitchell Shire have had enough.
With piles of tires and bags of household items and waste being spotted on the sides of roads, the dumping is not just an eyesore for all, but a safety hazard to motorists too.
“It’s taking away from the area,” said Broadford resident Heather Osland.
With local volunteer groups taking on the responsibility of cleaning up, Ms Osland urged the council to step in and help.
“I don’t know what the answer is, maybe a hard rubbish pick-up?”.
One of 600 groups under environmental organisation Landcare, the Sunday Creek Dry Creek Landcare Group (SCDCLG) stated that they regularly removed rubbish from the sides of roads and waterways in the shire.
SCDCLG member Jacqui Fulton said that the removal of household rubbish was a difficult process.
“Household rubbish is the worst as the bags split and the plastic blows everywhere and end ups in the creeks and farming paddocks where animals will eat it.”
Ms Fulton noted that the dumping was not exclusive to household items and tires, but also extended to environmental and biological hazards.
She stated she had recently found invasive plants dumped on the side of the southbound side of the Hume Freeway, and noted that some had already taken root.
“Asbestos and other materials have also been found at Mount Disappointment,” she said.
Ms Fulton added that the process of prosecuting offenders was disappointing, and that she wanted harsher fines and stricter legislation for those found guilty of rubbish dumping.
“Even if someone goes to the trouble of finding evidence, the EPA don’t prosecute.
“It’s disheartening for people who care enough to find evidence, and it’s similar to the weed pest management – it [the fine] is too easy for the perpetrator to get out of.”
The Wandong Heathcote Junction Community Group (WHJCG) also stated that they frequently removed rubbish dumped on streets in Wandong, along the Epping-Kilmore Road, the Wandong Hume Freeway ramps, the Wandong-Broadford Road, and O’Grady’s Road.
WHJCG member Allen Hall stated that he had been in contact with several agencies regarding tire dumping in the area, including Mitchell Shire Council and more recently Vic Roads, with the latter forwarding him onto Public Transport Victoria.
“Much of the rubbish is thrown from vehicles passing through Wandong, but there is also rubbish that can only be from our residents. To those people we can only appeal to them to look after our beautiful town and take your rubbish home.”
The Mitchell Shire currently has four resource recovery centres in operation, with facilities in Broadford, Pyalong, Seymour, and Wallan.
Although the Seymour facility is open five days a week and the Wallan facility six days a week, both Broadford and Pyalong are only open two days a week, making it difficult for residents in these locations to schedule their drop-offs.
The opening hours of the centres may also add to the difficulty of utilising the facilities, with the operational hours for all being between the hours of 10am and 4pm.
Council issues resource recovery centre vouchers with the first rates notice of each year, and the voucher can be scanned five times with each scan worth up to $40.
If the load exceeds the value of remaining vouchers, residents are required to pay the difference.
The centres do however offer free disposal of co-mingled recyclables, e-waste, car batteries, flat cardboard, fluorescent globes, and gas bottles to rate payers, non-rate payers, and businesses.
