Waimea Weekly
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Locally Owned and Operated
Wednesday 7 November 2018
WWI vets remembered
Page 16-17
Page 9
100 th National Rowers
Veteran Rally
dig deep
Page 27
Illegal dumping costing thousands Amy Russ Tasman District Council (TDC) has announced that illegal dumping in the region cost the ratepayers almost $50,000 for the last financial year. David Stephenson, asset engineer for TDC, says the $49,970 spent is similar to last year’s costing and it continues to be a problem for
the community and the council. “We are seeing a bit of a spike at the moment, but it comes and goes. On average, the costings are around $50,000 a year. People are dumping things that they really don’t need to dump. “There are second-hand shops, pay-it-forward sites and buy sell swap sites that don’t cost anything to utilise. If you take a vehicle to a
transfer station it doesn’t actually cost anything to get rid of.” Animal carcasses, household rubbish and abandoned cars are the most common items that are being dumped and left mainly by rivers and road reserves. “The oddest item we find by rivers is actually full TDC rubbish bags. So people have gone to the trouble of driving to the river to
dump a bag that will actually get picked up for free from outside their home.” “Illegal dumping is a bit of a social issue and we need to make people aware of their options. “From a pile of household rubbish, once the recyclable and reusables have been separated, what’s left can actually be quite small and will cost a minimal
amount to take to the transfer station” People can be fined $400 for their actions under the Litter Act, and David says the dumping of toxic and/or dangerous goods can incur fines of $750 through to court prosecution. To report illegal dumping call the Tasman District Council on 03 5438400.
Richmond School students Freya Childerhouse and Lachlan McNeill exit the fire training house during the Clued Up Kids event on Wednesday, October 31. The event, in its third year, provided safety skills for 9-11 year-olds to help them stay safe in a range of real-life scenarios. More than 500 children from schools around the area attended. Photo: Emily Beaumont.
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