Concerns raised over illegal dumping in nature reserves

A CAMPAIGNER against illegal rubbish dumping has called out the practice in and around Bendigo after he made a shocking discovery in a nature reserve.

David Dudley said he found “tons and tons” of domestic waste on a former mine shaft site in the Whipstick Nature Conservation Reserve in Huntly North during a recent exploration of the area.

He said the dumping at the reserve was the worst he had ever seen.

“I was cleaning out a dam just down the road the other day and I thought I’d go for a drive and see what’s around,” he said.

“I walked up this ridgeline; it’s a cleared area and easily accessible, and in these old shafts are tons and tons of rubbish.

“This is all household and domestic waste; fridges, car tyres and everything.”

Mr Dudley lives in Townsville, Queensland, but has family in Bendigo who he visits regularly.

A former solider and combat medic, he has become an outspoken critic of illegal dumping after seeing it proliferate in his North Queensland city.

Mr Dudley has set up and coordinates Facebook pages called Tidy Up Townsville and Tidy Up Victoria to spread the word about the issue.

He said he had reported the dumping to the City of Greater Bendigo, the Environment Protection Authority, and Parks Victoria, primarily using the app SnapSendSolve to lodge issues with authorities.

He said Parks Victoria had acknowledged that the problem of illegal dumping in and around Bendigo was “massive” and struggled to stay on top of it.

To clean up the site, Mr Dudley said a specially trained crew with necessary equipment would be required.

A request for comment from Parks Victoria was passed to the EPA.

A spokesperson said illegal waste dumping of commercial and residential waste is a statewide issue with multiple agencies working to reduce the number of incidents.

“It impacts all communities and can harm the environment adding to pollution and fire risk,” they said.

“If you see illegal dumping, you can report it to EPA, council or if you know the manager of the land where the dumping has occurred, the relevant agency.”

In a statement last November, Parks Victoria described Bendigo as being on top of the list of illegal rubbish dumping locations in regional Victoria, with around 1400 dumping incidents then impacting parks on Dja Dja Wurrung Country.

“Every piece of rubbish dumped in local parks ultimately shifts the financial burden associated with clean-up onto responsible residents, undermining community and government efforts to beautify Bendigo’s natural landscapes,” ranger team leader Mathew Sobey said.

“Illegal dumping can harm human health, pollute the environment, reduce amenity and is costly for Parks Victoria to manage.

“Many of the household items we find dumped in parks can be disposed of for free… There are legal and safe disposal options available… If you can drive to the bush, you can drive to your local transfer station.”

Parks Victoria is partnering with the EPA, the City of Greater Bendigo and the Conservation Regulator on the #ParklandNotWasteland project to tackle the problem.

Surveillance operation Cleantree is also being launched at known hot spots.