Community Vigilance Key to Ending Illegal Dumping
Published on 20 May 2025
Illegal dumping in our communities is more than just an eyesore – it poses serious risks to the health of residents and the environment, and contributes significantly to ratepayer-funded waste disposal costs. Warrumbungle Shire Council is seeking community support to identify illegal dumping of waste and to hold those responsible to account.
‘Illegal dumping can cause harm to human health and safety, as well as contaminate our environment. From poisoning plants and animals, to polluting bushland and waterways, it negatively impacts our community and access to these areas. Not only that, but it goes on to cost our ratepayers by diverting council funds into the clean-up efforts’ explains Mayor Kathryn Rindfleish.
‘In a large and geographically dispersed Shire like ours, Warrumbungle Council Compliance Officers can’t be everywhere. We rely on community members to assist with reporting illegal dumping as they see it, in order to identify hotspots, investigate these occurrences and to take appropriate action.’
Illegal dumping can include unwanted household items, rubbish, tyres, greenwaste and construction materials such as bricks and timber. It can also include dangerous waste types such as commercial by-products, chemicals and asbestos.
Council is asking residents and visitors to the Shire to be on the lookout for illegal dumping and to report incidents as soon as possible via the NSW EPA’s RID online portal or via their phone hotline.
‘Ideally, reports should include photos of the dumping sites and any specifics that might help identify the source of this contamination. The provision of map coordinates will also aid in identifying the specific locations’ said the Mayor. ‘The more people report, the better equipped we can be to map the extent of the problem across the Shire, clean up these sites and to prevent offenders from continuing these behaviors. The community plays a vital role in prevention of dumping and proper disposal of waste.’
Information guiding the correct disposal of various waste types through Council’s kerbside collections, transfer stations and landfill facilities is available through the Warrumbungle Shire Council website.
To report illegal dumping, visit RID online at https://ridonline.epa.nsw.gov.au/ or call the EPA Hotline on 131 555.
For further information on illegal dumping and local waste management services, visit:
https://www.warrumbungle.nsw.gov.au/Plan-Build/Environmental-Compliance/Illegal-Dumping
https://www.warrumbungle.nsw.gov.au/Residents-and-Services/Waste-Recycling