Road through Mount Clear pine plantation littered with illegally dumped refuse

The dirt section of Brittain Street - and surrounded by suburbia - is a common dumping spot, but was looking especially woeful this week with multiple mattresses, sofas, car restraints, broken toys, fridge parts and packaging strewn across a large area.

Some items were covered in layers of fallen vegetation and overgrown blackberries.

"I'm really disappointed," Cr Des Hudson said.

The majority of our community do the right thing when it comes to rubbish.

"There is just a small minority that unfortunately don't consider the environment and the local amenity."

The south ward councillor said CCTV might not be effective as the Mount Clear problem was spread over a wide area, but he encouraged people who lived or walked nearby to safely record and report any suspicious behaviour using Ballarat's Snap Send Solve app.

They can also contact council via info@ballarat.vic.gov.au or 5320 5550.

"Ratepayers in the City of Ballarat get two tip vouchers a year and that's been the case for about 10 years now. It's had a reasonable amount of success," he said.

"It has some anomalies. For example, thousands of absentee landlords would get the vouchers with their rates notices - but renters wouldn't.

"Lots of people ask about hard rubbish collection - and that would be a cost shared across all residents, even if not everyone used it."

The council's infrastructure and environment director Bridget Wetherall said a hard waste collection would be considered in a coming waste strategy update due to begin in late 2023.

But she said there were actions people could take now.

"The City of Ballarat offers initiatives like 'half-price mattress week', which allows residents to dispose of old mattresses at the Ballarat Transfer Station," Ms Wetherall said.

"A 'free green waste week' is also held every spring.

"Recyclable items can also be taken to the transfer station for free at any time of the year when the station is open, and eight Pass-on-Glass drop-off sites are always open for free glass collection."

The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) and Parks Victoria both said the land where the dumping occurred was managed by Hancock Victoria Plantations - but the company said the land was the responsibility of the Ballarat Gold Mine.

However, the agencies said it was a City of Ballarat responsibility if dumped on the road reserve.

It was not known how much the clean up of illegal roadside dumping cost the City of Ballarat, but in the Moorabool Shire the estimated council bill is $100,000 a year.

The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) said removal and any prosecution depended on the agency managing the land.

It also said the number of reports had increased from 13,000 to 20,000 in recent years due to the introduction of a streamlined system.

Members of the public can report illegal rubbish dumping by calling EPA's 24-hour hotline on 1300 372 842 or providing details online at epa.vic.gov.au/report-pollution/reporting-pollution

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