Cr Haweil suggested the Andrews government’sdoubling of the landfill levy last year,from $66 a tonne to $126,caused some of the recent surge.
“I’m not justifying the behaviour in the slightest,but if you’re a dodgy waste operator,you’re trying to run your business profitably or you’re just greedy,are you really going to be investing more in disposal?” he said.
He called on the state government to use the money collected from its increased levy to better fund the Environment Protection Authority. The authority wastold to slash jobs and disband its waste crime unit in August less than two years after it was created as part of government cost-cutting.
Dick Gross,chair of not-for-profit Keep Victoria Beautiful,said increasing instances of illegal dumping illustrated the agency’s ineffectiveness.
“Dumping of unsightly rubbish and toxic material is rife in Victoria,but sadly our environmental watchdog remains asleep at the wheel,” he said.
Keep Victoria Beautiful has been collecting dumped soil images supplied by council workers. In one instance,Mr Gross said an amateur football club in Melbourne’s north arrived at its training ground to find asbestos-laden dirt and building materials.
“Until the EPA muscles up and repeat offenders are publicly named,shamed and punished,the systemic dumping of dangerous and unsightly matter will continue,” said Mr Gross,the former mayor of Port Phillip council.
In Victoria,people caught illegally dumping waste can be fined about $2000 and companies $8261.
In Wyndham City Council on Melbourne’s south-western fringe,36 piles of soil and building materials have been reported in the past three months – enough to fill 1½ shipping containers. Soil and dumped rubbish is forecast to grow 66 per cent this year compared with 2020.
City operations director Stephen Thorpe said more than $300,000 had been spent on removing dumped waste this year,an arduous process because asbestos-affected soil needed to be sifted and treated. That money could instead be directed to positive causes such as building footpaths and cycling paths,which the council spent $2.2 million on last financial year.
“Under the new Environmental Protection Act,the generator of the waste soil has an obligation to demonstrate it is not contaminated,or if it is contaminated,classify and dispose of it appropriately,” Mr Thorpe said.
“Builders and others with small amounts of soil waste seem to be having difficulty complying with this requirement.”
In a joint statement with Hume City Council,the Environment Protection Authority called on the public to report offenders and note details such as the number plates of trucks.
“EPA can fine or prosecute them;we can even make them clean it up. It all starts with that call from a member of the public,” said northern metropolitan regional manager Jeremy Settle.
The agency also urges consumers to look closely at the quotes of contractors offering to remove their waste and file complaints against those offering unusually low prices.
Mr Gross said Keep Victoria Beautiful recently surveyed employees from 26 councils about waste management and their interaction with the Environment Protection Authority. About 92 per cent reported they “faced barriers” when working with the agency,and 68 per cent were unsatisfied with the support provided.
Contact the journalist at michael.fowler@theage.com.au
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