ASBESTOS sheeting, fire extinguishers and other hazardous chemical waste are increasingly being illegally dumped on public land, and Forest Fire Management Victoria has had enough.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Officers have responded to more than 20 reports of illegal rubbish in parks and forests in the last few months,.
Most troubling for Hume assistant chief fire officer Aaron Kennedy was that the waste appears to be coming from commercial businesses.
“People who dump rubbish in our forests have no regard for the health and safety of others or the environment,” he said.
“These actions are putting the community at risk, which is unacceptable.
These actions are putting the community at risk, which is unacceptable.
- Aaron Kennedy
“Illegal dumpers are becoming more and more cunning, and the volumes of waste they are dumping is increasing.
“Recently, almost 200 used fire extinguishers were found dumped near the Chiltern-Mt Pilot National Park.
“We were also forced to temporarily close a popular roadside rest stop in Edi, after a large amount of asbestos sheeting was found down a disused well.”
Mr Kennedy said cleanup costs were running into the thousands of dollars.
Illegal dumping can attract fines of up to $6342.