Brimbank council welcomes a state government announcement of support for the clean-up, surveillance, and enforcement of illegally dumped rubbish.
The government has announced it will invest $21.5 million to tackle illegal dumping and to provide extra financial support for councils and public land managers to clean-up illegally dumped waste.
According to the state government, $8.5 million of the funding will go towards clean-up costs for illegally dumped rubbish and toxic waste in public spaces, and help public land managers clean up priority waste.
It will also cover up to 50 per cent of the clean-up costs in situations where all avenues to trace the perpetrator and recover costs have been exhausted.
The other $13 million will go towards the Illegal Dumping Taskforce to ramp up surveillance, enforcement and clean-up efforts across Victoria to catch more people flouting the law and hold them to account.
The state government said the taskforce will be led by the Environment Protection Authority (EPA), who will work with the Conservation Regulator and undertake enforcement activities using expanded intelligence and monitoring to detect and respond to waste crimes in key locations.
The taskforce will also review fines and cost recovery for illegal dumping, hold offenders to account through the courts and step up naming and shaming of those who do the wrong thing, the state government said.
Brimbank mayor Thuy Dang told Star Weekly that council welcomes the announcement.
“Dumped rubbish is costing council and ratepayers over $1 million per year in Brimbank and the problem is growing,” she said. “Support from the Victorian government will help ease the cost burden and help to identify and prosecute offenders.
“At Brimbank, we have already expanded enforcement efforts to tackle illegal dumping and increased community education and information to raise awareness of how to dispose of rubbish responsibly and report illegal dumping. State government support will help boost these efforts.”
Rubbish dumping and littering on public land is illegal with a maximum penalty of $3,951,800 for businesses and $800,000 for individuals or five years imprisonment, or both, according to the state government.
To report illegal dumping, call 1300 372 842.
