By Alesha Capone
Leaving a pile of rubbish and unwanted household goods under a sign saying that illegal dumping is prohibited could be viewed as either ironic or silly, or both.
A resident who spotted this sight in Vanderbilt Avenue, Truganina last week took a photo and posted the image in a community Facebook group.
The resident said she was sick of seeing rubbish dumped in the street, especially when Wyndham council offers free hard-waste collections for residents.
The council’s director of city operations, Steven Thorpe, last month told Star Weekly that there has been an increase in residents reporting issues such as rubbish dumping, abandoned vehicles and eyesore properties since the first coronavirus pandemic lockdown in March.
“During COVID-19 restrictions we have seen the emergence of positive community behaviour, including residents reporting more incidents of rubbish dumping,” he said.
“More people are walking around their neighbourhoods for their daily exercise instead of driving to and from work, and more people have noticed dumped rubbish, dogs off-lead, unsightly property and abandoned vehicles in our city.
“They have been doing the right thing and reporting it to council.”
Wyndham’s environment and sustainability portfolio holder, Cr Heather Marcus, said that while it was disappointing to see people discarding their rubbish illegally, the majority of residents did not engage in such behaviour.
“People caught dumping rubbish will be made clean up the mess and face fines of between $330 and $8,000 – or even more depending on the severity and type of dumping. Some of these offences can carry a criminal conviction,” Cr Marcus said.
“There are no excuses for dumping rubbish around Wyndham, especially with three hard waste collections annually for every resident that can be booked on demand.”
Hard waste collections can be booked via: www.wyndham.vic.gov.au/book-hard-green-waste-collection.
To report illegal rubbish dumping call the council on 9742 0777.
