A load of rubbish

A recent outbreak of illegal rubbish dumping in Surry Hills has prompted a group of local residents to take matters into their own hands, setting up an ‘Illegal Dumping Taskforce’ which aims to encourage “responsible waste disposal”.

According to Nichols Street Community Group spokesperson Brian Noad, the problems have been ongoing for the last four to five weeks, with builders completing renovations a particularly acute cause. “Rapidly developing inner-city terrace renovations, are very prone to illegal dumping by building contractors,” he said. “Some are too lazy to take their waste to a landfill site…[which] lowers the value of the very property and surrounding properties they are renovating for sale.”

Mr Noad said narrow laneways and small city streets were facing the worst problems, with the list of dumped rubbish including furniture, mattresses, boxes, computers, TVs and vehicles.

The taskforce’s job includes leaflet letterbox drops, reporting dumping to City of Sydney Council’s illegal dumping collection service, and regular laneway cleanups by concerned residents.

Individuals may be fined $750 on the spot for illegal dumping, with a maximum fine of $1,500 for corporations. The number for the City of Sydney’s illegal dumping collection service is 9265 9333.