If you try to illegally dump large amounts of waste in Penrith, you will be caught. That’s the message being spread by the Western Sydney Regional Illegal Dumping (RID) Squad – and it appears to be getting through to people.
In the last financial year, the RID Squad investigated 706 incidents of illegal dumping of waste and issued almost $65,000 in fines for offences.
But so far in this financial year, $33,000 in infringement notices have been issued.
“The value of penalty notices varies depending on the incident,” a Council spokeswoman said.
“The squad has found more cases of smaller dumps of waste this year, which means the overall figure will be lower than last year.
“It appears that the message is getting out to people who want to illegally dump large loads of waste that they’ll be caught if they try to do it in Penrith City.”
RID Squad coordinator, Barry Ryan, recently presented a report to Council’s Policy Review meeting, which detailed the various incidents that had been investigated.
He said the RID Squad would go to great lengths to prosecute those who illegally dump in the area.
RID Squad officers even tracked down someone via social media after they found remains of a large fish out in Londonderry. The person responsible left a trail of evidence as he posted a photo on Facebook of the large fish he had caught, allowing investigators to pounce.
