An 18-month investigation into illegal dumping has led to the conviction of a serial offender responsible for three illegal dumps across the Lake Macquarie and Central Coast regions.

A 43-year-old man from Sefton, Western Sydney, was convicted on three charges of dumping at Toronto Local Court on Monday.

The man was fined $60,000 and ordered to pay $30,000 in clean up costs to Lake Macquarie City and Central Coast councils.

“The fact that someone thinks they can dump tonnes of asbestos-contaminated waste on a public street and get away with it is just outrageous,” Regional Illegal Dumping (RID) Coordinator, Rob Robertson, said. 

“As this case shows, no matter how long it takes, we will keep working until we find those responsible.

“This was a significant pollution incident and the person responsible showed a complete disregard for both community safety and the law.

“The imposition of nearly $90,000 in fines and costs in court shows how serious these matters truly are.”

The Hunter/Central Coast RID Squad began investigating in February 2019 after 10 tonnes of contaminated demolition waste was found dumped on Marconi Road in Morisset.

Among the waste, which had clearly been affected by fire before being dumped, investigators uncovered a distinctly patterned linoleum, commonly known as ‘lino’.

Similar material was found dumped at Catherine Hill Bay and at Calga on the Central Coast, which suggested to investigators that the culprit was a serial offender.

Through viewing CCTV footage, door knocking, and analysing the crime scene, in contingence with building fires across the region, investigators were able to identify a site in Mann Street, Gosford, as the waste’s origin.

“When speaking to the owner of the site of origin during the investigation, they were able to assist by producing a number of photographs of the interior of the building taken before the fire,” Mr Robertson said.

This helped the RID squad build evidence against the Western Sydney man, who was responsible for the removal of asbestos and other waste from the Gosford site.

Visit the Environment Protection Authority (EPA)’s website for more information on RID squads and how you can report littering.

– Calum Thomson