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Dumped rubbish annoys resident

Posted on December 1, 2009, 6:06pm and updated on December 2, 2009 at 2:11 pm

rubbish dumped
From bike parts to computer bits and grass clippings — a vacant block in Peake Street has become such an unsightly dumping ground for resident Syliva McKinnon (pictured) that she often loads her trailer and takes the rubbish to the council’s dump.

But just two weeks ago when someone disposed of long metal fencing poles, wire and an old fold-up chair, Ms McKinnon contacted the Mount Gambier City Council and asked for action to be taken.

“I don’t mind grass clippings, but other rubbish is unsightly and every time I take rubbish away, I pay $29 for a small trailer load,” she said.

“Sometimes I even sort out the bits that can be recycled and put it in my recycling bin.

“I asked council recently to get the owner to cut long grass and someone came out to do it, but when they cut the grass, mice and rats run away and hide in my house.”

However, Mount Gambier City Council engineering manager Daryl Morgan said it was not a good idea for residents to clear vacant land when dumping takes place.

“Residents may have the best intentions, but if people dump on vacant land and see that someone is taking it away, they will keep coming back to dump more,” Mr Morgan said.

“Also, if we are called to inspect the property and items have been removed, we can’t make a proper assessment.”

Mr Morgan said it was the responsibility of the owner of the vacant land to keep it clean.

“If residents know who the owner is, they should approach the owner first and ask for the land to be cleaned up,” he said.

“If nothing is done, or if the owner is unknown, residents should contact council and we will do an inspection and if necessary, take action against the owner.”

Flammable undergrowth inspections are done on vacant land within the Mount Gambier city boundaries annually, but when complaints are made to council, health officers assess for unhygienic conditions.

“It’s a bit of a grey area if the dumped items are only unsightly and not unhygienic,” Mr Morgan said.

“We inspect and decide if it compares reasonably to most backyards.”

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Comments

One Response to “Dumped rubbish annoys resident”

  1. Mr S on December 2nd, 2009 5:35 pm 1

    I think that the reason why people dump their rubbish in un-occupied blocks or out of town is due to the increased dumping fees that have to be paid at our transfer station not only are we charged that we dump our rubbish but now there are hidden cost’s that people will face it cost extra to dump electrical goods and also cost extra for tyre’s there only the extra costs i know of i understand that the economy proberly has something to do with increased prices as everywhere we look things are getting higher in priced i think there needs to be a better solution eg, cheaper option for dumping other wise i dont think we will see the end of ileagle dumping

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