'Over it' - Illegal dumping plagues Henry Lawson Drive, residents fed up
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Do you drive along Henry Lawson Drive at Padstow Heights? Or specifically, Alphards Point Road, River Road, Reesby? Because I received this message from James. James says, I wanted to bring up an issue regarding Henry Lawson Drive, Padstow Heights. There are a number of large, heavy vehicles, trucks, parked alongside the road where they're serviced and they're washed. Looks like they've been abandoned. On top of that...

People seem to be dumping rubbish there. There are currently about four piles in that section. I've contacted the local council, nothing's being done. Well, I've been sent some of the photos and we're not talking bags of rubbish being dumped. Looking at the photos, lots of tyres, old tyres. There is a piano or maybe it's an organ that's been dumped and a lot of other rubbish.

131873, if you're from that area, have you seen the rubbish that's dumped along Henry Lawson Drive? Now, we contacted the Canterbury Bankstown Council about this. They say Henry Lawson Drive is a state-owned road and the responsibility falls on the RMS.

Having said that, if council has made aware of dump rubbish, steps are taken to ensure it's removed. Recently, a council report outlined some of the measures being undertaken to prevent illegal dumping. Transport for New South Wales, we've sought a response from them. They say dumping is a serious offence. Transport for New South Wales has identified where this is locating. We're working with the appropriate contractor to remove the offending material. If people witness illegal dumping, you can make a report. OK, let's talk to James. James, tell me what happened. What did you see?

Hi, Clinton. Thanks for having me on. Look, I contacted to raise you about this ongoing issue at Henry Lawson Drive at Padstow Heights, especially between that section of road that you're talking about. What started to be one or two trucks about four years ago has now become a makeshift truck depot with about 30 heavy vehicles and trailers regularly parked there. And I noticed them being washed and serviced on the roadside, which is causing what I think would be possible serious environmental concerns for

It's also a safety issue. It's on a blind corner, so when the trucks are pulling out of there, there's been a lot of near misses that I've witnessed and I'm sure other people have witnessed as well. This spot is on the Georges River catchment. It's right alongside Little Salt Pan Creek and the Georges River National Park, and it supports a vital aquatic mangrove ecosystem, and the runoff from these oils and detergents and wastes, you know, it threatens these areas, which are critical for the quality of the water and our local wildlife.

And to make it worse, it's just being used as a dumping ground. This has been happening for years. The locals are fully aware of it. So I guess you've got two issues here, James. You have the fact that the trucks are parked there, so using, as you point out, as a depot, but it's the rubbish that's being left behind, which I'm assuming some of it's coming from these trucks. I'm not blaming these truck drivers. They've got to park their trucks somewhere, but I believe it's not the appropriate location to park them. But there's...

You know, tradespeople and that have just been reversing their dump trucks there, their little tippers and their trailers, and then just chucking the stuff out and doing the runner. I wonder whether maybe it's, and we're just speculating here, whether some people are dumping all this garbage. And as I mentioned, we're not talking just bags of rubbish. There's a piano in one of the photos that have been sent. Because those trucks are parked there, whether they think they can hide the rubbish effectively behind those trucks?

Oh, 100%. It seems to be more behind the trucks than out in the open. But there's a little park that no one uses, unfortunately. It's a beautiful little spot where the RMS does truck inspections. And that's a regular dumping spot too. Okay, mate. Thanks for letting us know about that. I'm going to put you in the running for our word on the street. We want to actually get this rectified, obviously, by the local council of transport for New South Wales. Good on you, James.

Thank you. Yeah, if you see something around Sydney that we should know about, that's what Word on the Street is all about. Word on the Street for temper, a great night's sleep. Night after night, the difference is temper. And James is going on the running to win our temper cooling pillows tomorrow. So if you see something like this, let us know. But I'd be intrigued to know whether you've actually passed this spot, Henry Lawson Drive. It's such a busy part of Sydney in Padstow.

where this piano actually looks like it's been sitting there by the side of the road for about a year. I don't know how long it's been there for. So Transport and New South Wales, they say, we take this issue seriously, dumping. If you witness illegal dumping, you can make a report through RID, RID Online, which is ridonline.epa.nsw.gov.au.

And the council's saying, look, it's a state-owned road, so effectively it's the responsibility of transport for New South Wales. But if you see similar things around Sydney, let me know about it. 131 873 is our number. If it's happening in Sydney, you'll hear it on Sydney Now with Clinton Maynard on 2GB.

Taronga Zoo is running a special fundraising campaign today. It's called Taronga Giving Day. They are raising funds for the wildlife hospital at the zoo. They care for hundreds of injured and orphaned animals every month. Often if you see, and I know WISE has this relationship, if they see an injured animal by the side of the road, they take them to Taronga for help.

But the zoo is trying to raise some money. The hospital hasn't had any renovations in decades, so they're trying to raise some money. If you want to give to Taronga, there's a website, give.taronga.org.au, and of course all donations over $2 are tax deductible. Now every contribution that's made today is quadrupled by the zoo's very kind partners. So it will help raise money to keep this hospital in operation and to upgrade the hospital. But

In recognition of the fundraising campaign today, I've got a couple of double passes, a couple of family passes to give away. In fact, I'll give away one now, but I'm not going to make it easy. You've got to guess what this particular animal is. Okay. 131873. What animal, zoo animal is this? I was going to say whale, but you don't find a whale in Taronga Zoo, do you? Well, maybe in the harbour. Okay. What's that sound? 131873. And our winner will get a family pass to go to Taronga Zoo.