Dumping costs charities dearly
IT’S all well and good to have “de-clutter my life” as a New Year’s resolution, but not at the expense of Toowoomba’s hard-working charity groups.
Residents driving through the intersection of Ruthven and Long Sts yesterday noticed overflowing St Vincent de Paul Society charity bins surrounded by donations and what appeared to be rubbish.
Despite repeated calls from all Toowoomba groups with donation bins for people to donate larger items on weekdays during business hours and to not leave items lying around overflowing bins, the expensive problem continued over the New Year’s long weekend.
Just under 12 months ago Diocesan president of the St Vincent de Paul Society John Elich called for residents to be respectful of the vital service.
He said overflowing charity bins commonly led to thieves rifling through donated items to grab the plum finds, leaving little more than rubbish behind.
With plenty of rain forecast this week, damaged items are likely to be left by the time workers were able to collect the overflow and sort through it.
Mr Elich called for residents donating goods to try to do so on weekdays if possible so the bins could be filled on weekends only by those who were too busy with other commitments.
It was a sentiment echoed by Lifeline Darling Downs and Southwest CEO Derek Tuffield only weeks ago in response to a similar problem in Highfields.
He said the problem cost the service dearly, using funds that could otherwise go to employment or assistance for residents.
“The overall dumping fees cost us $65,000 to $75,000 per year for the rubbish we receive,” he said.
“That’s a couple of staff positions that are being put into the waste management system.”
St Vincent de Paul staff were unable to be contacted by The Chronicle about the problem over the long weekend.