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#97278 - 05/05/08 02:56 PM
illegal dumping
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onestop
Member
Registered: 11/01/05
Posts: 118
Loc: SW Washington
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Any suggestions for catching illegal dumpers? DH pays a fortune for garbage pickup for 2 big bins at the back of his business, and the dumpers have gotten so bad there is scarcely room left for our own garbage. I was thinking of switching to clear heavy-duty bags so at a glance we could tell whose trash it is, and if there are non-clear bags in the bins that would be a give-away too. We were thinking of trying something like this first instead of going to the expense of building a locked gate around them or installing a security camera, I don't know!
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#97279 - 05/05/08 03:14 PM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: onestop]
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14tonks
Member
Registered: 10/25/01
Posts: 6295
Loc: Only 3rd world country in US
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I was thinking of switching to clear heavy-duty bags so at a glance we could tell whose trash it is, and if there are non-clear bags in the bins that would be a give-away too.
I'm not sure I understand how you think this will help the problem. Do you think you know who is doing the dumping and that there is something distinctive about what is in the bags that would prove it so you can prosecute them? If not, you'll just have a nice way to count how much garbage you know isn't yours, but it's still going to be in your bins, and if it's pulled out and left uncollected on your property, you are going to be held responsible for the mess and the nuisance.
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#97280 - 05/05/08 03:21 PM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: 14tonks]
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tropsicleAfter
Member
Registered: 10/30/06
Posts: 2431
Loc: Vicksburg, MS
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There are lockable dumpsters.
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tropsicle
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#97284 - 05/05/08 04:17 PM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: 14tonks]
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onestop
Member
Registered: 11/01/05
Posts: 118
Loc: SW Washington
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I was thinking of switching to clear heavy-duty bags so at a glance we could tell whose trash it is, and if there are non-clear bags in the bins that would be a give-away too. I'm not sure I understand how you think this will help the problem. Do you think you know who is doing the dumping and that there is something distinctive about what is in the bags that would prove it so you can prosecute them? If not, you'll just have a nice way to count how much garbage you know isn't yours, but it's still going to be in your bins, and if it's pulled out and left uncollected on your property, you are going to be held responsible for the mess and the nuisance.
By saying "could tell whose trash it is" I meant narrow it down to business (ours)/personal (not ours), to save us from going through every bag dumped. Of course we would have to put on gloves and go through bags we know are not ours in the hopes of finding something like junk mail. My guess is the same people get into the habit of dropping off their garbage week after week, so if we could figure out a few of them it could help over the long-term. I think the more people get caught around here the more of a deterrent it could have.
It is a rural area and garbage collection is rather expensive, partly from the transportation costs and also because the trucks sometimes go to transfer stations instead of actual dumps, which is more expensive. I think this just makes illegal dumping more tempting. There is also the chance that some of DH's employees are dumping their own personal trash, but I really don't know for sure. If personal trash started showing up in a clear bag, for example, I would start to wonder.
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#97286 - 05/05/08 05:16 PM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: tropsicleAfter]
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14tonks
Member
Registered: 10/25/01
Posts: 6295
Loc: Only 3rd world country in US
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There are lockable dumpsters.
Yeah, that's really the only kind you see around here. Even a lot of the building garbage cans are fenced/locked if they're out at the front of the building by the sidewalk--in that case not so much to keep people from putting things in them as to keep the homeless from pulling everything out and strewing the contents all over the sidewalk looking for deposit bottles or something else saleable. The simplest solution is just to keep it from happening. Even if you manage to identify one or two of the culprits and prosecute them, it probably isn't going to make any real dent in your problem, plus you'll be out all the time and aggravation tracking them down and taking them to court. If you're still getting mystery bags added after you've padlocked them, you'll know it's employees who have access to the keys.
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#97287 - 05/05/08 05:34 PM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: 14tonks]
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Margie Kahn CMT
Member
Registered: 02/17/99
Posts: 978
Loc: Oakland, California
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At least they're using your trash cans. Around here, they simply drive their junk to an out-of-the-way place and leave it at the side of the road. As soon as the city removes it, something else appears in its place. TVs, cans of paint, old furniture, you name it. A lot of the problem stems from people who are paid to haul away your junk but don't want to pay the dump fees, so they just drop it somewhere under cover of night. The city of Oakland has cautioned people to not pay the haulers in full until they return with a receipt from the city dump to prove they actually took the stuff there.
Even dogs don't sh*t where they eat. It really disgusts me.
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#97288 - 05/05/08 05:42 PM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: 14tonks]
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onestop
Member
Registered: 11/01/05
Posts: 118
Loc: SW Washington
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Thanks tropsicle - I'll check to see if they have lockable bins the same size as what we already have. I would hate to go through all of this and then have the same "regulars" just dump bags on the ground next to the bins, because then the only way to get rid of those bags is to put them in with next week's trash. Uggghhhh. Methinks DH might just need to eventually fork out for the security camera too. In theory if this prevented enough illegal dumping to reduce the frequency/amount of pickups that would eventually pay for the camera.
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#97321 - 05/06/08 08:20 AM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: onestop]
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NiteNinja00
Member
Registered: 01/14/03
Posts: 1043
Loc: Indianapolis
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You know, you may actually want to try just putting out a sign telling people that they are on camera when they really aren't. Just thinking that there are cameras around might deter some of them. Just something that says "NO ILLEGAL DUMPING! SMILE! YOU'RE ON CAMERA!"
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There are three kinds of people in the world. Those that can count and those that can't.
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#97326 - 05/06/08 09:07 AM
Re: illegal dumping
[Re: NiteNinja00]
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baldymom
Member
Registered: 02/26/04
Posts: 632
Loc: Hampton Roads - Va
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And even take it one step further. Put out one of those motion sensor lights that come on when you walk by, and mount a camera right there next to it. No one says the camera has to be hooked to anything, just make it look like it is. 
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What would you do with a brain if you had one? -- Dorothy -- Wizard of Oz
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