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No Public Dumping

NO DUMPING!

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Despite the signs posted all over the park’s landscape, screaming “NO DUMPING IN PARK”, “ILLEGAL DUMPING IS A CRIME”, or “ILLEGAL DUMPING ZONE”, sometimes followed by “WARNING: VIOLATORS WILL BE PROSECUTED” in all caps, people still continue to illegally dump their unwanted items and waste within the park’s city limit. What such madness could drive a human to push the envelope and defy these signs, even after a serious warning was given if ignored?

Some of the possibilities could include…

  • High disposal fees · Laziness · Not enough legal disposal sites · Disposal site is too far away · Disapproval of authority · The person did not see the sign(s) · The person cannot read English · The person does not care about the environment

If a thought process was involved before the act was committed, sometimes there was a manifestation of indignation towards the rule or maybe towards the lawmakers, but not always. Whatever the reason may be, a failure to defer the written rules was what ultimately lead to the negligence.

This illegal dumping law is most definitely not in the wrong for existing; trash disposed in an improper manner could have significant ramifications to the environment. Even so, could it be that the consequences of breaking this law are not strict enough? For instance, if the fee for illegally disposing the waste was quite a bit higher than the legal disposal fees, or maybe even some jailtime to go along with it… would that be enough to change this person’s mind before dumping?

Some human studies prove that a higher number of college students remember far more by listening to a book rather than by reading it, meaning that those students are better audio-learning than their visual-learning peers. The visual learners understand more material if there are illustrations to go along with the reading. Even better yet, more is remembered from the book if listened to while reading along and viewing illustrations, compared to the traditional style of just reading alone, which helps individuals who are more on the tactile-learner side.

Hence, maybe having a sign all by itself is not a good enough warning. An illustration might help deter some, but still may not be enough. Further yet, what would a prosecution warning illustration look like? Would it be of a surveillance camera?

Regardless of the outcome, if even after significant warning the person chooses to illegally dump their unwanted item(s) in the remote area, the offender must be caught in the act in order to successfully prosecute. But not all images stand up in court.  An Illegal Dumping Camera, specifically designed to capture high resolution images that identify the perpetrator and the license plates in complete darkness are needed.

What is your community doing to stop Illegal Dumping?

Illegal Dumping Creates Health Hazards

Illegal Dumping Creates Health Hazards

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For some people illegal dumping is considered a nuisance. Whether it is the construction company that leaves house debris, the resident that leaves the refrigerator, or the tire facility that dumps tires, all events are illegal.  Illegally dumping is not just a nuisance.  It is a community health hazard.  There are many health concerns that should be addressed, not to mention how illegal dumping affects the community’s quality of life.

Health concerns caused by illegal dumping are more complicated than people realize.  There are pathogens that are hosted by critters that find shelter and food within the unlawfully abandoned trash. There are also pollution concerns to both the local area and the ground water runoff that can enter streams and other waterways. And beyond that, is the mental health decline that unsightly dump sites cause.

To prevent these health concerns, every community must implement an Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program.  QStar Technology is a leader in helping municipalities across the country to strategize and implement an Illegal Dumping Program to end the illegal dumping that is plaguing their communities. The right strategy and tools are paramount to creating a successful Illegal Dumping Program.

Protect the communities and start a successful Illegal Dumping Program to prevent health hazards.

 

 

Abandoned tires

Illegal Dumping-Stop the Disease

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Most communities struggle with illegal dumping and the problems of disease that illegal dumping creates. Abandoned tires, appliances, and furniture provide the perfect nesting ground for rodents and insects.

Rodents need water, food, and shelter from the environment and other animals that prey on them for food. Discarded items such as tires, pieces of wood, and mattresses offer suitable shelter to make a nest in.  Rodents live to scavenge for food and mate. Did you know rats can have 2,000 offspring in a year? A lot of germ carriers! According to the CDC, rats can transmit 35 diseases to people.

Another germ carrier is an insect.  Insects can transmit disease to people as well.  Insects also need water, shelter, and food to survive.  Unlawfully dumped tires provide an excellent source of pooled water for mosquitos to multiply.  Dump sites have an unsanitary ecosystem full of junk and disease, just waiting for the human host.

Even if the areas are remote, the problem will encroach upon the neighborhoods. Therefore, it is imperative that communities implement an Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program to stop the Illegal dumping that is occurring.

Illegal Dumping Enforcement Programs are designed to stop the unlawfully dumping activities and prevent the multiplying of rodents and insects that bring disease to the residents.  It begins with the priority.  It involves many departments within the community to work together.

What is your city doing to stop illegal dumping and end disease?

#Illegaldumping #publicworks #stopillegaldumping

Stop Illegal Dumping Pathogens

Stop Illegal Dumping Pathogens

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Most people are aware of illegal dumping crimes in the form of mattresses, appliances, tires, and other discarded construction items.  The unlawfully dumped items are an eyesore bringing down the property values of the neighborhoods.  But besides the trashy appearance, the harmful effects of illegal dumping are so numerous and diverse, that it MUST be opposed with the utmost urgency and rigor. One negative consequence which ought to be sufficient motivation for the swift eradication of illegal dumping is the drastic spread of zoonotic pathogens via rodents.

Pathogens which can be transmitted from animals to humans are commonly carried by rats and other rodents. And when waste is disposed in places not permitted, it provides a ready source of nutrition and shelter for the dastardly rodents which carry the zoonotic pathogens. The rodents can spread the pathogens by means of their ecto- and endoparasites. Thus, people do not even need to come into direct contact with the rodents to be infected. All that is necessary is for the ectoparasites, which the rats carry, to abandon ship in favor of a human host. The highly infectious power which rats wield can easily be proven if one only reviews the history of the bubonic plague which ravaged all of Europe, killing roughly 33% of its population. And this was all made possible by rats traveling via cargo ships.

Urban areas suffer the most from this issue of increased infection rates. This is because many urban areas cannot effectively manage their waste, which leads to continuous creation of new illegal waste sites, which ultimately produces a rat’s utopia. Waste such as used tires, construction debris, old appliances, and furniture, as well as general household, commercial and industrial waste provide a reliable source of nutrition and shelter for rodents and consequently a home base for the spread of zoonotic pathogens.

So, what can be done?

First, a community must implement an Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program.  But to have a successful Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program, multiple departments must work together, as the program must include Legislation, Evidence and Enforcement. The program should have two essential elements, evidence and deterrence. Human resources are the most important aspect of the program and the best tools to be provided for their use are Illegal Dumping Cameras, which are specifically designed to capture evidence needed to prosecute. It is nearly impossible for traditional surveillance to be used because traditional surveillance cameras need electricity and internet, which is not available or very costly in remote areas.

 

What is your community doing to stop the spread of pathogens from illegal dumping?

#FightIllegalDumping #NoIllegalDumping #StopIllegalDumping #publicworks