State Member for Wallsend, Ms Sonia Hornery MP, will move a Notice of Motion today in the NSW Parliament, calling on the NSW Government to do more with the NSW Waste and Environment Levy to reduce illegal dumping in the Wallsend electorate.
Last year, Councils and ratepayers handed over nearly $800 million in Waste and Environment levies to the NSW Government and only 17% of that was returned to Councils through environmental programs.
The programs are aimed at discouraging landfill and encouraging recycling and reuse. However, only a small percentage of the $800M was actually used for this purpose.
The Wallsend electorate has seen a significant rise in illegal dumping of rubbish in recent times, with the Link Road at Wallsend, the Wallsend to Glendale Cycleway and many other areas being used to dump large amounts of waste.
The Notice of Motion calls on the Minister to ensure the Levy is reinvested in waste management programs.
Quotes attributable to Member for Wallsend, Sonia Hornery
“The fringes on the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Council areas are being used as personal dumping grounds, with dozens of sites reported by local residents to my office.”
“It would be rare to go a day without a complaint being received about illegal dumping, and the significant cost to dispose of waste at Awaba and Summerhill is always blamed for it.”
“The truth is the State Government pockets a significant chunk of the tip fees, currently over $140 per tonne, and is supposed to reinvest that money in programs to help discourage landfill and encourage recycling and reuse.”
“We are fast running out of suitable land for landfill sites and we need to do more recycling and reusing. The Government needs to invest in these programs to help curb illegal dumping.”
“Councils are unable to police illegal dumping going on and when the dump sites are discovered, they are then forced to pay for the clean-up and are slugged with the Waste and Environment Levy to dispose of it.”
“The Government must urgently address this issue and I will be calling on the Minister to do so.”