.jpg)
Click the image above to view slideshowA Papamoa resident disgusted to find more than a dozen rubbish bags dumped at a beachside car park fears there is a lack of deterrence to curb the mounting careless behaviour.
Large black rubbish bags and piles of household carpet were left strewn on the roadside and over the fence at Harrisons Cut car park on Saturday.
Black sacks full of rubbish were found dumped at a beach accessway at Harrisons Cut.
.jpg)
The dumped rubbish was located just metres from a Tauranga City Council sign that states it is illegal to dump household and garden rubbish, and anyone caught doing so faces a $500 fine.
Alastair Lock and wife Mary were walking through the beach access on Saturday when they discovered the discarded rubbish.
'There is a sign there but obviously people don't take any notice. It's as bad as I have seen it for the number of rubbish bags and carpet,” says the Papamoa resident.
'We have had sheep guts, from people doing some home kill, just dumped on the road side in the past and it's not getting any better.”
Alastair, who is a New Zealand Motor Caravan Association member, says council recently approved the car park for overnight motor home use, and if people continue leaving rubbish it will tarnish the area for tourists.
Records show NZMCA members spend $211million a year traveling across New Zealand and the rental industry is worth more than $650m.
Alastair feels better signage and monitoring of the area could go a long way to stopping dumping.
'I don't think it is good enough. I'd like to think the signage could be improved or highlighted in some way.”
SunLive is currently awaiting comment from TCC's pollution department.
19 comments
Find some receipts/letters
Posted on 21-07-2014 11:33 | By jed
I think if they found some receipts or other material in the rubbish they could figure out who dumped this. I noticed the waste transfer station put up fees again -- that place always seems to be increasing the cost -- so maybe the council should cut the fees and more people would use the place.
And the answer is!!!
Posted on 21-07-2014 11:55 | By Sambo Returns
For councils to provide a decent refuse collection service.... as part of rates payments, as there used to be, you are never going to stop this disgusting behaviour when "refuse stations" charges are so over the top, refuse collection should be a core infrastructure responsibility of Council.
Makes the RENA
Posted on 21-07-2014 12:36 | By Murray.Guy
Makes the impact of the RENA on our land mass all but insignificant in comparison to the daily desecration perpetrated by locals! Why should I subsidize the disposal of someone's else's rubbish?
Rastus
Posted on 21-07-2014 12:36 | By rastus
Going way back to Mayor Bob Owens days the tip used to close 11am12noon and those who were shut out because they were there too late would dump their rubbish on secluded roadsides. Bob did two things - opened up the tip through the weekend (when everyone is tidying up their places) and then made sure the powers that be came down hard on the offenders - sensible thinking to solve a problem - get to it Stuart youv'e already been shown the type of thinking that is required. (some call it common sense)
Find Them
Posted on 21-07-2014 12:55 | By paplocs
Easy enough to find who it is. We had a problem with someone dumbing rubbish in our workplace cardboard skips. Went through the contents found several letters with the guys name and address (idiot) dumped the rubbish on his lawn. Had a letter of apology from him in a couple of days.
Let's not forget
Posted on 21-07-2014 13:31 | By ajunct
This isn't the fault of the Council - this is the fault of the lazy arrogant people who dumped their rubbish in a public space showing complete disregard for the community, the environment, and the health and safety anyone else who uses that spot. It is not the fault of "the government" or "councils" or "the police" or any other faceless institutions. It is the fault of the actual people who did this. Don't make excuses for them or justify it. We are all one community so stomp it out at a community level (ie if you know someone who does this sort of thing tell them not to). Does no one have to take account of their own actions any more?
Rubbish
Posted on 21-07-2014 13:56 | By Tyraone
I think the sooner the council drop their recycling fees and better still supply rubbish bags to each household maybe the illegal dumping will stop. rubbish bags to buy are darn expensive!!!!! If you have more than one each week it does run into quite a lot of expense
Overit
Posted on 21-07-2014 20:34 | By overit
Ajunct you are so right. There is no excuse for this lazy, sneaky pollution. I bet these people have the money for other things.ie booze, takeaways. Rural Welcome Bay Rd gets all sorts-old TV's, mattresses, cartons of empty grog bottles and yes refuse. These people have no shame.
Bring back
Posted on 21-07-2014 23:50 | By GreertonBoy
The good old dump... free... and this idiotic dumping in public areas will stop. The money lost by not charging to dump, will be mostly made up by not having the cost of cleaning up after dumpers. Make it about the poor planet instead of the income to the coffers.... wake up!
Personal responsibility
Posted on 22-07-2014 09:41 | By maccachic
Im so sick of other people being blamed for people behaviour. If it is too expensive to dump rubbish maybe people should consider this before spending money constantly on disposable items and look to reuse their waste. This is disgusting behaviour and the fines need to reflect the true cost of cleaning this up. Our wheely bins cost around $200 year ($3.84 a week)
Don't blame the council
Posted on 22-07-2014 18:11 | By southmark
blame those who dumped the crap in the first place. Overit and Ajunct are right: this isn't due to the council, it's due to those who dumped the rubbish. Reduce what you buy and recycle your packaging. We put out 1 black bag every 4-5 weeks
Simple Solution
Posted on 22-07-2014 21:50 | By The Caveman
There are some VERY good (and reasonably priced) SMALL motion activated day/night cameras available that could be installed at such locations (generally used to provide covert surveillance of areas where security is not critical but necessary, or to film/record animals in the wild). If suitably set up correctly and placed they will provide both vehicle registration and photos of the dumpers (the animals that dump the rubbish) They work very well, both day or night - and I would suggest it's a good bit of expenditure as far as ratepayers are concerned - catch a few of the dumpers and take them to court and name and shame them and the problem will soon stop. Oh and then move the camera on to the next dumping spot !!
Southmark
Posted on 23-07-2014 02:35 | By GreertonBoy
I disagree.... it is the councils doing for sure. If you go to the dump and have to pay x amount for the rubbish, x amount for 3 tyres, x amount for a mattress and x amount for an old TV or fridge.... You end up with a damn big $X at the end. If the council made the dump free, then hammered anyone caught dumping illegally, then 99% of rubbish would end up at the dump. If the fines were big enough for illegal dumping and the community were observant, hunting type cameras at known dumping sites, rangers watching out, going thru illegally dumped rubbish to find the dumpers.... or even rewards for information leading to a conviction, then the amount of illegal dumping would drasticly decrease. Some fools will still dump and if caught, council receive$ from fines etc. Much better idea imo
Overit
Posted on 23-07-2014 18:51 | By overit
Hey Greerton boy, you put it all back on the Council. Rubbish has to be trucked to the Waikato. There is a cost for this. We ratepayers cannot carry lazy drongos who choose to be devious and drop their crap around our environment.
Why send it to Waikato?
Posted on 24-07-2014 02:45 | By GreertonBoy
Find something to use it for and make sure more gets dumped at the dump insteadof on the roadsides? Sorted, the steel and recyclables will be sold as scrap, same as aluminium, dirty paper and food scraps can be mulched and will turn into soil, the plastic recycled? Transporting our rubbish with the cost of fuel is mad, and we are paying for it, both thru rates and dump fees.... we are the cash cows! At least lets get the rubbish into the dump and off the side of the road for a start. While the cost of dumping at the dump is high, the illegal dumping problem will remain... If it stays high cost, lowlifes will dump in more remote and (once were) pristine places... Like New York dry and burn the rubbish to make electricity... surely it can be refined better and recycled further and put tosomeuse
Overit
Posted on 24-07-2014 12:41 | By overit
I so agree with you GB. about how to deal with rubbish. It would be so wonderful to burn it for energy but probably not in my lifetime. Low lifes will still buck the system.
Thanks overit
Posted on 25-07-2014 02:34 | By GreertonBoy
We collectively have to do more with rubbish... sort it better (ourselves)and create less of it to start with. We need to find uses for what we cant recycle (metals, plastics) food scraps should be feeding stock (pigs/chickens) and to achieve this, we need all of the rubbish to be able to be found in one (the right) place. If the council found things to do with the rubbish, lifted the fees for using dumps (put dole bludgers in as sorters) then 99% of rubbish would come to the right place and less in the local scenery....
Time to think!
Posted on 27-07-2014 23:35 | By GreertonBoy
We have to stop digging holes and burying our rubbish. There isn't enough land for a hole big enough to do it! We need to find things to do with the 'rubbish' All metal should be recycled, same as all oil, plastic, wood, glass. Green waste can be mulched, food waste can be made suitable for chook pellets or cattle feed or fertilizer. The old rubber from tyres can be used for other rubber products. Burying our 'waste' is just that, a waste of resources, transporting rubbish long distances to bury it in a landfill is simply ridiculous!
Solutions?
Posted on 02-08-2014 17:49 | By Blessed
What is going on with the 'Waste to energy' Plant they were going to develop in Te Puke that was in the paper this time last year??, it wld be good to be kept up to date with things like that.. Our recycling centres are free to drop off, People are just Lazy. Ive always Recycled, and my family are lucky if we fill 1 Council Rubbish bag a week, How the heck can people have so much rubbish?
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to make a comment.