Coffs Coast mountain bikers remove 250 kg of rubbish from forest in one morning
How many kilograms of junk can a few people find in one morning? Some of the region’s mountain bikers have just found out.
Coffs Harbour
Don't miss out on the headlines from Coffs Harbour. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The scale of illegal dumping in the region has been laid bare by a team of mountain bikers who spent a single morning clearing 250kg of rubbish from the forest.
With rain preventing a day of riding, members of the Coffs Harbour Mountain Bike Club set about cleaning up bushland at multiple sites along the fire trail network in their permit area at Pine Creek State Forest.
Pine Creek State Forest is an immensely popular mountain bike park featuring more than 14 km of trails.
There the volunteers found nappies, mattresses and tyres along with a considerable amount of general waste which had been illegally dumped.
Club president Mick Strazzari said it was disappointing to see that amount of illegally dumped rubbish in the forest and said members were passionate about monitoring for signs of illegal dumping.
He urged those using the forest for mountain biking to report dumping if they saw it occuring.
“The club spends a considerable amount of time and energy keeping the trails maintained,” he said.
“We hope other forest users will work with the club to maintain vigilance against illegal activities and to support approved single-track riding in the forest.”
While the volunteers did the heavy lifting, Forestry Corporation NSW picked up the tab to dispose of the waste and partnerships leader Ryan Ellis said they were grateful to community groups who support efforts to remove dumped rubbish.
“During the clean-up work, evidence was collected and provided to authorities to investigate.
“It’s hoped that enforcement action and ongoing monitoring of the area will make people think twice about dumping rubbish in our region’s State Forests.”
Anyone noticing incidences of illegal dumping are asked to note any relevant details and report via the NSW Environment Protection Authority’s (EPA) online reporting tool RIDONLINE https://ridonline.epa.nsw.gov.au
Coffs Harbour sale and auction results, week ending February 22
Coffs Harbour recorded six property sales over a million dollars last week, the latest auction and sales results reveal.
‘Melted’: Toddler horribly burned on playground slide
A shell-shocked mother is demanding answers after her two-year-old daughter suffered severe burns from an overheated council-owned playground slide. Here’s the latest.