Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos announced a $21.5 million investment on Sunday, October 12 for the government’s Illegal Dumping Taskforce.
$13 million of that money has been allocated to strengthen surveillance, enforcement and clean-up efforts, while $8.5 million is set to help councils and public land managers cover up to 50 per cent of clean-up costs when perpetrators cannot be traced.
Mitchell Shire Mayor John Dougall said the funding was a timely and much-needed investment to help councils combat the growing issue of illegal dumping.
“We’re seeing the impact of illegal dumping across our parks and reserves, and we’re committed to tackling it head-on,” Cr Dougall said.
“This funding will help us expand our deterrence and enforcement measures and ease the burden of clean-up costs on our community.”
With its ‘Dob in a Dumper’ campaign, which encourages residents to report suspicious activity and protect shared spaces, the funding announcement aligns with council’s ongoing efforts to reduce illegal dumping across the shire.
As part of this campaign, council partnered with Victoria Police for a joint operation in the Beveridge area on Saturday, August 16, involving six hours of surveillance, deploying drones with night vision and long-range monitoring capabilities to detect illegal dumping activity.
Council says the increased presence of drones, cameras and community reporting was already acting as a strong deterrent.
In addition to the recently announced state support, the Federal Government has committed up to $1.5 million across Mitchell Shire, Hume and Whittlesea to improve community safety.
The funding will support the installation of infrastructure such as CCTV cameras, lighting, fencing and bollards.
“We intend to apply for this federal funding to further bolster surveillance and safety measures,” Cr Dougall said.
“It’s a welcome opportunity to strengthen our local response.”
Council has also flagged that offenders face serious consequences when illegally dumping.
It will continue to work with state agencies and local communities to ensure the issue is tackled head-on.
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