State Government of Victoria

Environment Protection Authority

Get involved

Report illegal dumping

  • What is illegal waste dumping?
    • Illegal dumping is the deliberate or unauthorised dumping, tipping or burying of waste on land that is not licensed or fit to accept that waste. Illegal dumping can threaten wildlife and can also lead to long-term contamination of land, waterways and groundwater, particularly when the waste is from an industrial source or contaminated soil. Waste dumped near residents can contribute to an unsightly environment that looks and feels unsafe. It is a lost opportunity to reuse dumped materials.
    • Illegal dumping can range in scale from a single bag of household rubbish to large household items such as TVs, appliances and electronic waste, furniture, mattresses, industrial wastes, construction and demolition materials, garden waste, packaging, tyres, old cars and soil.
    • The illegal dumping of contaminated fill material, tyres, manufacturing, construction and demolition waste is an indictable offence, and can attract a maximum court penalty of $610,700 or seven years imprisonment for an individual, and more than $1.2 million for a corporation.
  • What can I do to help prevent illegal dumping?
    • You can report illegal dumping to EPA Victoria by contacting 1300 372 842 (1300 EPA VIC).
  • What is EPA doing about it? Through landfill levy funding, EPA has established a dedicated Illegal Dumping Strike Force team. This team is:
    • supporting businesses to understand their legal requirements for managing waste and recyclable material
    • working with its council partners and other government agencies to share intelligence about dumping offences and hotspots
    • investigating and enforcing against incidents of large-scale industrial waste dumping.

 

Further information

    Page last updated on 22 Sep 2016