Charities around the Mid North Coast have had enough of illegal dumping at their stores.

In the wake of a mass item dump at Taree’s Salvation Army Family Store two weeks ago, store manager Danielle Volkers believes surveillance cameras and signs is not the answer to combating dumping.

"Just trying to let the community know more often or maybe what we need and don't need.'

"It's hard to get surveillance up and running and even when we do it doesn't always pan out anyway so I think trying to keep everyone informed is a good way to do it,” Danielle said.

It is not just items that are able to be sold that are dumped but rather household rubbish that should be sent directly to a waste facility. 

Lifeline Forster manager Peita Dent has been distressed over the sheer volume of unusual items 

December brought heightened stress to the Forster store with 75 tonnes of rubbish sent to the Tuncurry Waste Management Centre.

This equated to a cost of $19,500 out of the charity’s funds.

"I think it's because people don't want to pay the dumping cost because it is expensive."

"When they know it's rubbish that's when it's not fair," Peita said. 

Danielle agrees that dumpers are not feeling remorseful for their actions.

"I think it is the anonimity of it all."

"You can just do it without fear and 'nobody knows that I'm doing it’."

"They just don't think about the bigger picture of it all- we're not really a rubbish collector, we're there to give those in the community a bit of a hand and somewhere they can come, get things at a fraction of the cost and get the things they want.” Danielle said.

Recent developments have seen the store forced to take waste to the Bucketts Way Waste Management Facility- a near 40 minute trip out of town. 

Peita believes donators need to be better educated on the proper method to donate. 

“It’s not that we don’t want the donations but we’re here from eight in the morning until four in the afternoon,” Peita said. 

Volunteers have been known to take up to three and a half hours to dispose of the items.

The Forster store saw such a high volume of stock and rubbish following Christmas that they could not bring in any donations.

Members of the local community have voiced their displeasure of charities being left with the cleanup.

“Horrible people who do this to charities- should be ashamed of themselves,” wrote Penny Button on the Manning River Times Facebook page.

“Take your rubbish to the tip! If you want to donate something useful take it to the shop when it’s open!” Richard Eggins added.