Council closes ‘illegal dump’

KIM WATERS
Geelong’s council has closed a Moolap road after people started using it as a makeshift dump for hard rubbish and other refuse.
Councillors voted to close Mullanes Road after Greening Australia complained people were using it as a free dumping ground.
Councillor Andy Richards said the absence of a council hard rubbish collection and rising tip fees in Geelong had a “connection” with increased dumping around the city.
Cr Richards called on council to educate ratepayers on where they could dump hard rubbish “for free or cheaply”.
City of Greater Geelong ran its first and only hard rubbish collection in 2001. Residents have since called for council to reinstate the service.
The City’s Geelong Resource Recovery Centre fee schedule lists charges of $12.50 to empty a car boot of hard rubbish, $32.50 for a heaped single-axle trailer and $64 for a double-axle trailer.
Cr Richards suggested a monthly “second-hand Saturday” similar to a program in New South Wales for hard rubbish and e-waste collections.
Barwon Regional Waste Management Group had sought funding for a similar project in Geelong, he said.
“We need to help low-income families, the elderly and others who cannot afford tip fees or a skip,” Cr Richards said.
A Greening Australia Victoria branch spokesperson said the organisation requested the Mullanes Road closure.
The spokepserson said illegal dumping had been a problem since Greening Australia started work in the Mullanes Road area three years ago.
City of Greater Geelong’s Gary Van Driel said implementating a hard-rubbish collection would cost “the community” between $1.1 million and $1.9 million a year.