Clean up costs for illegal dumping increasing in Auckland

Tuesday, 2 May 2017

An illegal rubbish dump formed in 2016 in Flat Bush, south-east Auckland. People dumped household waste and other items on a vacant plot.

People dumping rubbish illegally are costing Auckland ratepayers close to $1 million a year.

Parts of Auckland, particularly in the city's south and often close to people's houses, are routinely being hit by illegal dumping, with some rubbish piles growing so big they need security.

In 2015, security guards had to patrol around a large pile of rubbish which had built up for several weeks on Robertson Rd Mangere.

Figures obtained from Auckland Council under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act show the cost of cleaning up illegally dumped rubbish has steadily grown over the past three financial years.

Clean-up costs alone have grown from just under $400,000 in 2013/2014 to almost half a million dollars in 2015/2016.

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Total costs to deal with illegally dumped rubbish were closer to $1m a year once the costs for investigation time and enforcement had been added in.

When broken down by region, south Auckland which encompassed Manukau, Papakura, Franklin saw the largest amount of rubbish dumped in its public spaces.

Recently, residents spoke out against illegal dumping in Otahuhu.

Rubbish dumped there included a bed frame, cardboard, red traffic cones, timber, alcohol boxes, car tyres and children's play equipment.

A resident said the pile had been sitting there for months as the council tried to investigate who was doing the dumping.

In total over the past financial year, there was more than 1300 tonnes of illegally dumped rubbish in the Auckland council areas, with 800 tonnes of this dumped in south Auckland.

This generally included furniture, appliances, household rubbish, tyres and green waste.

In another case in south Auckland, security guards had to be deployed to patrol a large pile of rubbish containing car tyres, timber and carpet that had been building up in Mangere for weeks.

The council said that while the highest volume of rubbish was dumped in south Auckland, those doing the dumping could be coming from outside that area.

About 5 per cent of waste dumped illegally was hazardous waste. In rural areas, there was also an issue with construction waste.

North/west and central Auckland each saw between 200-300 tonnes of rubbish dumped illegally in the last financial year.

Illegal dumping is classed as rubbish left on public property without the council's permission. Anything less than two bags full of rubbish was classed as littering.

Fines for illegal dumping range from a few hundred dollars to $30,000 if convicted in court.

Auckland Council waste planning manager Parul Sood said the council would go through the waste to find any evidence of who had done the dumping. 'We undertake flyer drops in the immediate area to encourage residents to notify us when they see illegal dumping happening, and regularly check hot spots. We can also install signs and cameras where needed.'

The council has contracts for clean-up in the north/west and central areas based on a fixed monthly sum. Where the costs fluctuated was if there were large volumes of illegal dumping which incurred additional removal costs. The number of call-outs which contractors had to attend also affected costs.

People can report dumped rubbish to the council on (09) 301 0101, or by phone 0800 InTheBin and leaving a message giving details of the location and the offender.