Roger Lindsay spent two weeks tracking down a man whose address was on a trailer load of rubbish dumped outside Tauranga's Riding for the Disabled headquarters in Ngapeke Rd.

The RDA volunteer noticed the addresses in the rubbish when clearing the dumped rubbish.

Roger Lindsay and the trailer load of rubbish dumped outside Tauranga RDA.

Since then, he's tracked down one of the named people to an Anne Rd, Otumoetai, address, and turned up and tossed the rubbish onto the drive, telling the residents he's returning their property.

The rubbish includes a clothes dryer, collapsed cardboard boxes, rubbish and paper work – with the names and addresses of two people with the same surname.

'I'm just returning your property,” he told the bemused Anne Rd residents. They say the man whose name is on the rubbish was only staying there, because he was injured.

Rubbish dumping is an ongoing issue for the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, which sees random dumpings occur frequently on the district's rural roads.

Statistics for the last three months show 70 instances of illegal dumping in the Western Bay. If a staff member had to visit these sites it would equate to more than one visit per day during a five day working week, says WBPDC's Kim Rahiri.

Where possible, a solid waste technician endeavours to visit the dumping sites to try and source evidence so appropriate action can be taken, says Kim.

Actions include returning the rubbish to the address found within the waste with a warning of a possible infringement notice. If it cannot be returned, due to volume or content, a letter is forwarded to the address linked to the rubbish explaining penalties and fines.

If sufficient evidence is available Council's compliance team will issue infringement notices and if stronger evidence (proof beyond doubt) exists, prosecution under the Litter Act is an option. The maximum fine is $500.