A toilet, hand basin, tiles, wall cladding, and demolition rubble were dumped in a dry water basin on August 2, just before very heavy rain fell. 

Some of the materials have leached out through the watercourse, which feeds into the Williams River.

Dungog council environmental services manager Paul Minett said the council was investigating and could confirm there was no asbestos in the pile.

He said the Dungog Common Recreation Reserve Trust had been told not to move the rubbish and the council intended to find the culprit and make them clean it up. 

“Previous experience of the council is that in a vast majority of cases there are identifying materials left in the waste, or someone around knows who did it,” he said.

Trust secretary Ros Runciman said the rubbish was dumped 200 metres from Common Road in a secluded part of the common that is close to where a biodiversity project had been recently finished. 

She thought it had been dumped during the night. 

“It’s a grubby act, there’s lots of little bits of HardiFex, little 20 cent pieces of it,” she said.

“It’s visually offensive and it’s in a gully so in theory it could wash into a bigger gully which feeds into common creek, which feeds into the Williams River.”

Mr Minet said the cost to dump rubbish at the tip would not have influenced the culprit’s decision. He said studies showed people dumped whether the tip fees were high or low. 

Illegal dumpers face an on the spot fine of $2000 and possible court action. 

Anyone with information should call Dungog council on 49957777.