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Prevent Vandalism at Water Treatment Centers

Prevent Vandalism at Water Treatment Centers

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The United States supplies its citizens with some of the safest drinking water in the world. Though many of us take this necessity for granted, many countries throughout the world do not have access to safe, uncontaminated drinking water. Much of the U.S. safe water supply is due to the implementation and operation of its water treatment centers.

Sources for drinking water are often subject to contamination by disease-causing microbes. These waterborne microbes, such as E. coli and Cryptosporidium, have the ability to cause debilitating sickness and disease. U.S. water treatment centers use a variety of different methods of water treatment processes to remove these types of dangerous pathogens in order to provide communities with safe drinking water.

Water treatment centers are starting to become a target for many would-be vandals who may be looking for a new swimming hole or to damage expensive equipment. Although vandalism is commonplace virtually everywhere, it exists as a very serious, potentially disastrous threat to a community’s water supply. Vandalized water treatment centers can easily lead to water contamination by means of damaged treatment hardware, rendering the purification process incomplete, thereby exposing the public to potential health threats.

Metal thieves, who often steal copper wire and other copper-containing equipment for profit, have been known to target remote utility centers searching for scrap materials. In addition to contaminating water supplies, the damage sustained by these thieves can end up costing millions of dollars in repairs.

Trying to prevent acts of vandalism at water treatment centers is difficult due to their often isolated placement. Water storage tanks are also maintained on rural hillsides in order to supply water pressure to the communities below. With little civilian oversight to deter vandals from trespassing and potentially damaging expensive equipment, there is little chance the suspect would be caught. Vandalism Cameras are necessary to protect the community’s source of drinking water.

Prevent Vandalism in Park Bathrooms

Prevent Vandalism in Park Bathrooms

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Restrooms are frequently vandalized in parks, because restrooms are usually private and there exists little chance of a restroom vandal being caught in the act of committing the crime. Acts of vandalism most often occur in situations where there is less civilian oversight, and thus, less of a likelihood of being caught.

After a park’s public restroom is vandalized, the sight of such a circumstance can have a negative psychological effect on people using the facility. Emotions triggered can often include feeling unsafe and dirty.  The facility is now labeled in the mind as unsanitary, neglected and unkept.

Instances of graffiti, one of the most common forms of vandalism, often experiences further recurrences if not quickly and thoroughly abated.  The cost of repairs due to vandalized restrooms can exceed tens of thousands of dollars and cause closures of the facility, often resulting in frustrated patrons who visit the park. The cost of repairs due to a vandalized park restroom causes budget cuts elsewhere, and leaves very little, if any, funding for regular, routine park maintenance.

If a public park restroom falls victim to an act of vandalism, repairs and a lack of routine maintenance and cleaning can leave the restroom facility in a state of neglect. This type of negligence can result in a restroom facility becoming extremely unsanitary and can often harbor diseases such as hepatitis A, as well as various viruses including shigellosis and streptococcus. Illnesses from viruses, like shigellosis and hepatitis A, are very severe and are common in unclean public restrooms.

With public park restroom vandalism being such a widespread occurrence, a means for preventing instances of vandalism are paramount in avoiding the costs associated with the crime.  Vandalism Cameras strategically placed deter negative behavior and prevent the costs incurred which include equipment repair, park closure, and the health of those people who enjoy the park.

Protect Parks from Vandalism

Protect Parks from Vandalism

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With Valentine’s Day here, what better way to spend the day than to love and protect our parks?

Acts of vandalism can wreak havoc on the aesthetic loveliness of our parks, costing previously allocated budgets, such as regular maintenance, to be cut to cover the cost of repairs. Without proper routine maintenance due to budget cuts, parks can start to look neglected by lack of care. Park closure is also often the result of occurrences of mindless vandalism while repairs are being undertaken.

The detrimental effects of vandalism imposed on our parks can also be irreparable and devastating. Natural rock formations and the fragile ecosystems of our most treasured national parks can be ruined indefinitely by damage wrought by an act of vandalism. Vandalism of this type can ruin the park experience for many generations to come.

February 14th is a special day for many people in many countries, as this date is reserved and dedicated to be the feast day of Saint Valentine. After gaining popularity throughout Europe in the 14th century, Valentine’s Day has come to be known as a celebration of love and affection.

Parks can be a relaxing and romantic place to visit with our loved ones on this special day.  Therefore, it is important that we maintain the natural beauty of our parks. Taking pride in caring for our parks is also a good means for celebrating, year-round, the ideals that Valentine’s Day stands for.

With Valentine’s Day quickly approaching, what better way to honor the celebration of love and affection than by loving and caring for our parks by preventing acts of vandalism?

Keeping Parks Safe and Vandalism Free

Keeping Parks Safe and Vandalism Free

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With many schools’ winter-break vacation coming up, it is important for children to have safe vandalism free park activities that keep them occupied while out of school. For parents, it’s also important that they know their children are safe while they’re at work or running daily errands. These out of school programs are offered and take place at many public park and recreation centers throughout the United States.

A parent’s concern for the well-being of their children while these activities are taking place is often their “number one” priority.

It is of extreme importance, then, that the environment in which these programs are run is considered a safe environment. Vandalized play equipment and graffiti both create a physical and emotional hazard that can harm children enrolled in these programs. Destruction of playground equipment can easily harbor unseen, potential threats to child safety, while graffiti creates an atmosphere of criminal gang activity that can lead to further instances of vandalism. Graffiti can also lead to a child’s perception that their park is unsafe and that no one seems to care about their well-being. These emotions can cause depression and anxiety for the children that experience these types of destructive behavior occurring in their parks.

With the well-being of children in mind, we need to give them the gift of safety this holiday season and ensure the continuance of these out of school programs for all to enjoy and feel safe.