Dumped: Rubbish and campsites that were left behind at Christies Beach Echuca Village for more than a month.
Photo by
Bransen Gibson
After weeks of waiting, piles of rubbish left dumped and abandoned at Christies Beach have finally been cleaned up.
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Busted tents, a damaged caravan, piles of disused camp gear and even old couches had littered the otherwise picturesque camp area for more than a month, before finally being removed this week.
Locals had expressed their anger at the rubbish left behind, with posts about the mess in the Echuca Moama Community Page on Facebook drawing dozens of comments and more than 200 “reactions”.
John Betts used to own property near Christies Beach and said the mess left behind was a “disgrace”.
“I’m disgusted with people who can do such a thing, I just don’t believe it,” Mr Betts said.
“It has been an issue since they allowed people to come and camp in huge numbers back in the ’80s. Ever since then, it has gone to hell.
“It’s had a huge impact on the roads and the tracks and the dumping of rubbish has been a big issue. I am quite convinced that if people hadn’t put a bit of pressure on, the rubbish would still be there.”
Trashed: A spokesperson for Parks Victoria responded that they are always working towards removing waste in a “safe and efficient manner”.
Photo by
Bransen Gibson
Parks Victoria are responsible for the Echuca Regional Park, an area that includes Christies Beach.
When asked by The Riv about the mess at the sites late last week — prior to the rubbish being removed — Parks Victoria said it had been alerted to reports of litter being left behind.
“Parks Victoria is aware of a number of instances of campsite rubbish left along areas of the Murray River in the Echuca area,” Parks Victoria area chief ranger Mark McKimme said.
“We’re always working to remove this waste in a safe and efficient manner.
“Campers are encouraged to take their rubbish home with them or take it to the Echuca Resource Recovery Centre, which is the nearest landfill site in the area.
“We conduct regular clean-ups throughout the year as resources allow and take car registrations when possible, but we cannot prevent every instance of rubbish dumping without community cooperation and support.
“Removing rubbish from campsites can create safety concerns for staff and cost Parks Victoria significant amounts of money, which also diverts rangers’ time away from managing and improving parks and reserves.
“This impacts facility maintenance and conservation programs that protect plants, animals and historical and cultural sites.
“As well as being unsightly, dumped rubbish harms the environment and has many impacts including contaminating local water supplies, garden clippings spreading invasive weeds and animals and birds harmed from eating camping and household waste.”
Unsightly: Abandoned campsites and litter that was left throughout the park.
Photo by
Bransen Gibson
The rubbish was reportedly still at the location on Sunday, but when The Riv went to visit the area on Wednesday, it had been removed.
Mr Betts said an industrial waste bin used to be in the area in years gone by. He said bringing the bins back could provide a solution to the problem.
“Then people at least have somewhere to dump it, rather than leaving it behind,” he said.
But he said the responsibility of clean campsites ultimately remained with the people who stayed there.
“If you bring it in, you take it out,” he said.
Parks Victoria said people were allowed to camp at one site for a maximum of six weeks.
However, it said there was nothing stopping people from relocating inside that same camp area.
Parks Victoria said campers were encouraged to limit their stay in any one spot along the river to ensure that areas remain accessible to all members of the community to enjoy.
Anyone witnessing rubbish dumping or littering in a park can phone Parks Victoria on 131 963 or the EPA Litter line on 1300 372 842.
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