"We have bulk donations piling up at the front of our shops following the removal of donation bins," business manager Kurt Russell said.

"It's a tragedy to dump and it's creating a nightmare for shop managers who are trying to do the right thing by our community as well as our environment.

"Our shops are closed, yet our shop managers are risking their own health by spending hours cleaning up donations every day. Furthermore, we are worried about contaminated goods in the current situation. Illegal dumping is always an issue for us, however, it's just really wrong in this set of circumstances."

Lifeline Mid Coast relies on donations and are encouraging people to hang on to items that are fit for reuse.

"We would like people to hang on to items that can be reused. We are going to need a great deal of support from the community when we re-open in the future" marketing coordinator Lisa Willows said.

"With what we are experiencing now, I hope there is a real push and awareness towards reusing items, buying second-hand, sustainability, ethical production and the vulnerability of production.

"We really value our donators and it's been really hard for us to shut the shops at this time. Our volunteer base are aged, and their sustained good health is important to us. We've had to remove the donation bins because we just don't have any volunteers or staff to service them or process donations."