Zoe Moffatt
As Hume council grapples with the skyrocketing cost to remove illegally dumped rubbish, Sunbury residents are calling for cheaper trips to the tip to help ease the growing issue.
Hume council recently revealed it spent $4.7 million in the 2022-23 financial year to clean up 11,000 illegal dumping incidents in the municipality.
Frustrations about these illegal dumpings and the cost of a tip trip- which is about double what Melton council charges- were shared on a community Facebook page.
Local resident Daniel Sheehan said people are illegally dumping rubbish because they can’t afford to take it to the tip.
“There are hard rubbish collections but these are not always suitable or convenient,” he said.
As it stands, Hume council charges its residents $67 for a station wagon of mixed waste, which is increased to $90 for non-residents.
Melton council charges its residents $29 for a station wagon of mixed waste. This is increased to $48 for non-residents.
Mr Sheehan said it’s these prices which have him considering going to tips outside of Hume, but he doesn’t think the pricing is fair.
“The tip should be subsidised for residents and ratepayers,” he said. “If you compare metro tips and transfer stations the pricing does vary. Melton tip is around half the price.”
“I think the shire is spending so much money with the development of new suburbs and estates all over the shire that it’s not putting money back into the established areas.
“Sunbury is only one area out of many.”
Council’s director infrastructure and assets Adam McSwain said fees and charges are informed by the state government landfill Levy, operation costs, disposal costs, previous fees, and periodic benchmarking with similar facilities.
“Infrastructure at resource recovery centres, transfer centres and recycling facilities are different across councils and therefore gate fee prices will vary,” he said. “Melton’s facility is vastly different to Hume’s.
“Hume service offerings also differ… council’s services include… four bulk waste entitlements totalling 10 cubic metres for all households per year. This exceeds the current entitlement offered to Melton council residents.
“Hume clean days are also offered once a quarter, along with mulching days, to dispose of larger items free of charge – a service which is not offered by Melton council.”
