Tongatapu's old and overflowing Tukutonga rubbish dump on the seafront at Popua will close down for good on March 30.

Talita Helu of the Tonga Solid Waste Management Project confirmed today, that Tukutonga is still open for public use, while new fencing is being completed around the site, and signs had been put up at the site entrance to inform people of its closure date.

Talita said they were scheduling for the fencing work, funded by the Australian Government, to be completed well before the end of the month. The old rubbish tip would be revamped, with recyclable rubbish sorted by a recycling company for shipment while the remaining rubbish would be buried in cells ready for the refilling of the area, a task to be funded by the New Zealand government.

In the meantime, the new $12 million pa'anga Tapuhia Solid Waste Management Facility that was opened for public use on January 17 at Vaini is operating successfully as more people are using the world class facility for their rubbish, said Talita.