'Beaches bear the brunt': Anger over illegal dumping at Makorori

Author: Imogen Brophy,
Publish Date: Thu, 16 Jul 2026, 3:03pm

Former Gisborne councillor Pat Seymour is frustrated with illegal rubbish dumping on Makorori Beach. Photo / Pat Seymour

A popular Gisborne beach is an illegal rubbish dumping hotspot, accumulating multiple tonnes of waste over the past two months.

National East Coast chairwoman and former Gisborne District councillor Pat Seymour said she had come across large piles of illegally dumped rubbish at Makorori Beach carpark several times this month.

“Certainly the beaches bear the brunt of it because they are reasonably isolated and people can stop there at night and get away with it,” she said.

On Monday, Seymour discovered what she described as a trailer-load and a carload of household waste dumped in the carpark.

Waste typically contained food packaging, black rubbish bags and other general household waste, she said.

The repeated dumping had caused Seymour great concern because of the area’s beauty and importance as a surf location.

Makorori hosted the national surfing championships earlier this year and has been the venue for other local and national-level events.

“I’m not a councillor now, but it was my area, so I’m really keen about the protection of our beach, and so many people do love our beautiful environment.”

She was concerned the ongoing problem could eventually lead to restrictions on public access if authorities were forced to introduce preventative measures.

“Does it mean that if people are going to persist in using this particular location, that that particular tree area is railed off?

“And so the benefit of it is not available for the community to use.”

In the meantime, Seymour said some residents had been taking matters into their own hands, using their own trucks and trailers to remove the dumped rubbish.

Gisborne District Council waste solutions manager Luke Knight said Makorori was a known dumping “hotspot”, with three tonnes of waste removed in the past two months. Photo / Pat Seymour

Gisborne District Council waste solutions manager Luke Knight said Makorori was a known dumping “hotspot”.

Around three tonnes of illegally dumped items have been removed from the beach over the past two months, he said.

“Areas where people can dump rubbish without being easily seen tend to attract this behaviour and, unfortunately, that often includes our beaches.”

“Illegal dumping continues to be an ongoing issue that affects our environment and community spaces,” he said.

The compliance team monitored Makorori twice a week during winter and every day during summer to identify and remove rubbish as quickly as possible, he said.

He encouraged anyone who comes across illegal dumping to contact the council immediately to reduce the impact on the whenua.

Knight encouraged residents to utilise recycling, disposal and donation options available in the district to dispose of waste properly rather than creating “unnecessary costs for ratepayers”.

The council continued to target illegal dumping throughout the district with signage, video surveillance and enforcement action.

LDR is local body journalism funded by RNZ and NZ on Air