Illegal dumping in Nambucca Valley forests discussed in Council Chambers Nambucca Valley Nambucca Valley - popup ad Nambucca Valley News by News Of The Area - Modern Media - December 11, 2023 Chris Humphreys is concerned about illegal dumping of rubbish in the Valley. CHRIS Humphreys used the public forum at last week’s Nambucca Valley Council meeting to raise the issue of illegal dumping in the Valley’s forests and what he sees as Council’s uncooperativeness to work with those who volunteer to clean it up. Mr Humphreys, a firefighter and Valley resident, is appalled by the current state of local forests, noting their decline especially over the last ten years. Advertise with News of The Area today. It’s worth it for your business. Message us. Phone us – (02) 4981 8882. Email us – media@newsofthearea.com.au He is particularly frustrated with piles of illegally dumped rubbish. “Importantly, we need to remember that at one stage our First Nations people called a lot of these areas home,” Mr Humphreys reminded Council. “They may have strong cultural significance to the Gumbaynggirr people,” he said. Last month Mr Humphreys contacted Council asking for help in the form of a “tip voucher” to dispose of some of this rubbish, but was told that tip vouchers or the like were not able to be offered by Council. The Council staff member Mr Humphreys spoke to suggested he contact Forestry Corporation as rubbish in this location was their responsibility. Mr Humphreys pointed out that if the rubbish had been dumped on a roadside or even at the gate of the Council’s Waste Management Facility, Council would have needed to pay for manpower, equipment and transport to remove this rubbish, whereas he was offering to do all of these things for free, far outweighing the cost of granting a tip voucher. Mr Humphreys advocated for either financial assistance in disposing of any rubbish collected and delivered to the Waste Management Facility or coordination between Forestry Corporation, Gumbaynggirr representatives, Council and himself to clean up these areas. Furthermore, Mr Humphreys pointed out that on a previous occasion when he had collected rubbish from the river, an area that was in the Council’s jurisdiction, he was told to leave the rubbish, including old shopping trolleys and a mobility scooter, on the kerbside, where it sat for weeks before some of these items ended up back in the river and the rest was finally collected by Council. “I would have taken it to the tip myself, but I would have been charged an exorbitant amount,” he explained. While Mayor Rhonda Hoban referred to those who dump rubbish in the forest as “grubs”, Councillor David Jones was more sympathetic, pointing out the high cost of using the Council’s waste disposal areas. Council resolved to receive a report addressing Mr Humphreys’ concerns and suggestions. Fees at the Council’s Waste Management Facility in Old Coast Road are currently $26 for anything up to the first 100 kilograms of rubbish or $312 per tonne for mixed waste in larger quantities. NOTA was told that scrap metal, such as old shopping trolleys, would be accepted for free. Old tyres, however, are never accepted at this facility. By Ned COWIE An old bed frame, visible from Tallowood Road, Hyland Park, at one of the sites mentioned by Mr Humphreys in his address to Council last Thursday.
