Weekend incidents spark City of Greater Geraldton warning against illegal dumping of asbestos at Meru tip

The City of Greater Geraldton has warned people not to illegally dump asbestos at the Meru tip, after multiple piles of the hazardous waste were found incorrectly disposed of at the weekend. City acting CEO Chris Lee said illegally dumping asbestos could have both severe and costly consequences. “Over the weekend three piles of illegally dumped asbestos were found at various locations at the Meru Waste Facility,” he said. “These irresponsible actions could endanger the health of other facility users and Meru staff who now have to recover this hazardous waste. “The removal of the illegally dumped asbestos, and the remediation of the site, also comes at a very high cost to the City.” Locals and businesses have to pay $21.50 for up to 100kg, or $183 a tonne, for the correct disposal of asbestos at Meru. “Attempting to avoid these fees by hiding asbestos in other piles of rubbish is unacceptable,” Mr Lee said. The council is reviewing CCTV footage of the dumping areas in a bid to identify those responsible and fine them. Fines for individuals caught illegally dumping asbestos can be up to $5000 and for commercial businesses it’s up to $25,000. For more information on identifying asbestos, health risks, safely removing it and what to do if you find asbestos go to the following websites: Department of Health, Asbestos Awareness and Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.