Illegally storing construction and demolition waste at a site not licensed to receive it has left a skip bin company and its director almost $15,000 out of pocket.
All Victorian Bin Hire and Demolition Pty Ltd and its director Arafat Ali faced charges in the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court on 25 January 2018.
The charges were brought following an Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) investigation found the company was collecting construction and demolition waste and illegally storing it at a commercial premise at Bolinda Road, Campbellfield.
All Victorian Bin Hire and Demolition and Mr Ali each faced four charges under the Environment Protection Act 1970, one in relation to the illegal storage of construction and demolition waste, the other for failure to comply with a notice requiring the company to cease accepting waste and two charges of dumping industrial waste.
The company was fined $10,000 by the court and ordered to pay EPA’s court costs of $4390 jointly with Mr Ali. Neither were convicted, however, Mr Ali received a one year good behaviour bond.
During the investigation, EPA officers issued the company with two notices, one that required it to stop receiving further construction and demolition waste, which was initially ignored.
The other notice required the construction and demolition waste to be removed and taken to a site that was licensed to receive it; this notice was complied with. EPA’s Illegal Waste Disposal Strikeforce is dedicated to reducing the dumping of large scale industrial waste.
During the last two years EPA has inspected hundreds of sites for illegal dumping and issued more than 170 legally enforceable clean up notices.
The growth areas of Melbourne, such as the Cities of Hume, Brimbank, Wyndham and Manningham are the hotspots in the metropolitan area, and EPA is working with local Councils there and wherever illegal dumping occurs.
Illegal dumping is also a problem in regional areas such as Bendigo, Mildura, Ararat and Geelong, where dumping commonly occurs on farmland or on public land such as state or national parks.
Anyone with information about suspicious stockpiles of construction and demolition waste is encouraged to make a report to EPA by calling 1300 EPA VIC (1300 372 842) or via the website www.epa.vic.gov.au