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Illegal Dumping- An Environmental Crime

Illegal Dumping- An Environmental Crime

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Illegal dumping, an environmental crime, is a concern throughout the world. Some unethical corporations and construction companies will go to great lengths to avoid paying thousands of dollars it costs to legally dispose of their waste. Private residences will also leave their large appliances or mattresses in a remote area rather than pay the small fee to legally leave the item in a designated drop off area.

Unfortunately, these actions are creating toxins in our ecosystems and entering our waterways. Toxins leach out of the discarded trash pile, soak into the soil, rivers, and underground waterways.  Researchers have been conducting studies that show high levels of toxins such as polychlorinated biphenyls in fish caught.  Even, non-hazardous items illegally dumped cause environmental decay and problems.

What can a municipality do to combat this environmental crime that threatens our drinking water and our overall public health?

Prosecuting illegal dumping offenders is a tricky business.  When it comes to illegal dumping, evidence must be clear and trustworthy to stand up in court.  With the lack of eyewitnesses, detectives must gather evidence from the hazardous pile to identify where it came from and who is responsible.  Municipalities must provide their Illegal Dumping Task Force with the right tools and resources, such as Illegal Dumping Cameras, specifically designed to provide trustworthy images of evidence that will stand up in court.

Is your Illegal Dumping Task Force using the right tools to combat the environment crime of illegal dumping?

 

New York City

How to Eliminate Illegal Dumping

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Who thinks of illegal dumping when they think of a big city?

When anyone mentions “the big city,” a whole host of images and thoughts and feelings flood into your mind. “The big city” has been glamorized as the place where opportunity is waiting for people who wish to make a name for themselves. It is “the big city” that sets the latest fashion trends. It is in “the big city” that you get to experience the greatest food, music, and art. Life is at its most glamorous in “the big city,” or at least that is how it is supposed to be. Nowadays, anyone who is well acquainted with city life have a whole host of negative and disparaging mental connections, like trashy and dirty, with the phrase, “the big city.”

For instance, residents of  many cities are plagued by an ever-increasing illegal dumping crisis, that keeps getting worse.  Unfortunately, these same cities lack the manpower and resources to adequately investigate and punish the hundreds of businesses which are suspect of engaging in illegal dumping activity. Many cities globally are facing illegal dumping activity that is endangering the health and safety of select neighborhoods and those currently living on the streets. Although the situation may seem hopeless, there is one step which cities should do without delay:

Create an Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program.

A Successful Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program involves many departments within the city.

  • Education: Educate the community about the hazards and the cost of illegal dumping.
  • Hotlines: Hotlines are a very useful tool when there are witnesses nearby.
  • Social Media Program: To ask the community to help identify perpetrators.
  • Legislation: Strict laws to combat illegal dumping.
  • Enforcement: Enforce, respond, investigate, and prosecute.
  • Staff Resources: Staff that is trained and dedicated to combat the illegal dumping problem.
  • Illegal Dumping Cameras– cameras specifically designed to provide prosecutable evidence in dark remote areas, where illegal dumping usually occurs.

Eliminate illegal dumping and create an Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program!

#noillegaldumping #stopillegaldumping #publicworks

Success with an Illegal Dumping Program

Success with an Illegal Dumping Program

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Illegal Dumping Programs come in all different shapes and sizes, depending on the need of the city.   So how do you measure the success of an Illegal Dumping Program? Has your city noticed a decrease in activity of illegal dumping?  If not, then you need to research why.

Statics show cities globally have seen a dramatic increase of illegal dumping during Covid.    Reasons varied, including a disruption of city resources to an increase of waste in the average household. People’s big trash items like appliances have increased due to the appliances being used more often due to people being home.  The city’s resources were lacking due to some employees being kept at home.  Therefore, a lot of people were either not sure how to dispose of their unwanted large items, or they did not care and illegally left their items where it was most convenient for them.

Unfortunately, even with people going back to work, the problem of illegal dumping has not lessened, but is getting worse.  Dump sites attract more dumping.  It is time for your illegal dumping program to be refreshed.  A successful Illegal Dumping Program involves many departments within the city.  Does your city care enough to put in the effort it takes to create and maintain a vibrant Illegal Dumping Program?

  • Education: Educate the community through social media, community engagements, and the schools.

 

  • Legislation: Tough legislation is needed. Stiff fines need to be adopted especially for commercial companies that illegally dump.

 

  • Staff Resources: To be successful, there needs to be dedicated staff to ensure the program is implemented and stays on track. So many programs lose the steam because their staff is scattered without focus.

 

  • Tools: Not all tools can do the job. You should not use a screwdriver when a hammer is needed.  Therefore, the right tools, illegal dumping enforcement cameras, designed especially to capture prosecutable images in complete darkness in remote areas are needed.

 

  • Enforcement: Enforcement is another key factor. Without the laws needed, the dedicated staff and the prosecutable evidence a city cannot enforce.  Enforcement is needed to deter further illegal dumping activity.

Is your city ready to protect the environment and create a successful Illegal Dumping Program?

 

Protect the Environment-End Illegal Dumping

Protect the Environment-End Illegal Dumping

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Illegal Dumping is a community blight that should be stopped. We are the stewards of this earth. We are the protectors of life. Mother nature has entrusted us with the task of preserving and cultivating the environment so that it flourishes. Most people would say they believe this, that is until they need to dispose of a large broken-down washing machine, or an old mattress, and they lack a nearby dumpster to throw it in. Often, a person’s desperate desire to get rid of bulk trash items outweighs their concern for the well-being of the environment, which results in illegal dumping.

Aside from creating an unpleasant site to behold, illegal dumping produces “chemicals from wastes and certain appliances” that “can leach into soil and local waterways causing damage to plants, wildlife, and water quality.” In addition to this, old appliances release chlorofluorocarbon into the air which severely damages the earth’s ozone layer. We cannot neglect the ozone layer unless we want to get burned up by the ultraviolet rays from the sun. And ozone destroying chemicals are not the only harmful consequence that can come from illegal dumping. Illegal dumping can also cause fires, pest infestations, and spread bacteria and viruses that infect animals and people. All these other risks pose an enormous threat to wildlife and surrounding communities. It is irresponsible to allow illegal dumping to continue for the sake of both nature and human life. But fighting illegal dumping and saving the environment can sometimes feel overwhelming since so many people do not want to take the extra effort to dispose of waste legally.

Thankfully, many communities are implementing an Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program. A successful Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program with internal departments working together includes Education, Legislation, Staff Resources, Tools and Enforcement. It is essential departments are utilizing Illegal Dumping Enforcement Cameras, which are specially designed to capture license plates and legally binding evidence to prosecute.

What is your community doing to protect the environment from illegal dumping?

#publicworks #noillegaldumping #stopillegaldumping