Roadside dumping in Twyford street sparks anger

Bags of cement dumped near the Ngaruroro River. Photo / Warren Buckland

Twyford residents are sick and tired of people using their suburb as a free rubbish dump.

Twyford resident Robert Griffiths says people dumping small amounts of rubbish in the area is common, but he was shocked to learn someone had dumped an entire trailer-load outside his property.

"That was unusual, it's normally like, boot loads."

Griffiths believed people could afford the refuse station fees, but were too lazy to dispose of their rubbish legally.

"It's just laziness, because sometimes it might only be half a dozen supermarket bags, they're just lowlifes."

A neighbour spotted two men dumping the rubbish about 6.10pm on Tuesday.

He followed them until they pulled into a driveway, where he confronted them.

"I confronted them and I asked them why were they dropping rubbish at the side of the road, and they basically said, what's it to you?" the neighbour said.

Another Twyford resident was clearly fed up with the situation, having placed a large, homemade sign on Raupare Rd saying "Hey lowlife, don't drop rubbish."

The Hastings District Council knew who was responsible for the trailer because of security cameras in the area.

"All of Twyford is covered by cameras, so they actually picked up the car with the trailer load coming in," Griffiths said.

The neighbour had also passed on the car's registration to the council.

A council spokesperson said they received several complaints on Tuesday evening and arranged for the rubbish to be cleared.

"Dumping rubbish on the side of the road is an offence under the Litter Act," the spokesperson said.

"But council is also concerned about the impact on the environment and works hard to encourage people to be responsible when disposing household rubbish."

The council had cleared the rubbish by 1pm on Wednesday.

The rubbish in Twyford was an ongoing problem however.

A quick drive around the suburb and you can find old tyres, bags of cement and old clothes, along with coffee cups and alcohol bottles.

The litter is especially bad underneath the Ngaruroro River overpass.

The council was unable to confirm whether the men would be fined, or how much, because the investigation into the incident was still in progress.

However, the fine for dumping more than 120 litres of rubbish (anything bigger than a small wheelie bin), is $400.

It costs $188.60 to dispose of 1 tonne of rubbish at the Henderson Rd transfer station, with the minimum charge being $12.