People who illegally dump garbage in ditches along rural roads can face stiff penalties, according to Corman Park Reeve Judy Harwood.
“It’s a perennial problem, and it seems to be worse every spring,” said Harwood in an interview on Wednesday, May 6. “I really don’t understand why someone would think it’s okay to dump their garbage in someone else’s back yard.
“Either they’re too lazy or too cheap to take it to the landfill. But in the end, it could turn out to be a lot more expensive for them if they’re caught.”
Harwood said the rural municipality has an anti-dumping bylaw that includes steep fines for offenders. The guilty party is also obliged to pay for the cost of clean-up.
For major offenses, the bylaw’s enforcement procedures and penalties are covered by the provincial Environmental Management and Protection Act.
“People should know that the police take these investigations very seriously,” said Harwood. “And they have a good track record when it comes to prosecutions.”
Corman Park Police Chief Warren Gherasim said this spring has seen a significant spike in the number of dumping incidents.
“It always picks up in springtime, but this year, because of the pandemic and everyone being at home, with all that time on their hands, it’s worse than usual,” said Gherasim in an interview May 6. “People are doing spring cleaning and they probably want to avoid paying landfill fees so they just dump it on the side of the road.”
Harwood said the appearance of garbage in roadside ditches and country residential areas is frustrating.
“It costs our ratepayers money to have to deal with this problem year after year,” said Harwood.
She said if anyone witnesses someone dumping garbage in a rural area, they should take a photo of the vehicle, including the license plate if possible, and report the incident to the Corman Park Police at 306-242-8808.
Harwood also encouraged people to report the location of garbage to the RM of Corman Park administration office at 306-242-9303.
Gherasim said the police often follow up on tips from area residents who write down the license plate number of vehicles seen dropping garbage.
“Lots of times there are witnesses,” said Gherasim. “People may be out walking their dogs or just paying attention to what’s going on in their neighbourhood. The information we get from these tips is very useful.”
He added that sometimes garbage contains documents that have names and addresses on them which can lead police to the culprits.
Gherasim said the fine for dumping is $1,000 for a first offense and $2,000 for a second and subsequent offense. An early payment option of $500 if paid within two weeks is provided for in the bylaw.
The police prosecute violators in Bylaw Court, which allows the municipality to recover the cost of clean-up.
Gherasim said these costs can often be very substantial.
“We’ve had instances where our public works crews have to pick up two or three tons of bricks, or 400-pound blocks of concrete, or 50-gallon barrels of used oil,” said Gherasim. “You can’t just go out with a pickup truck and a couple guys for jobs like that. You need a loader and a dump truck. That’s not cheap.”
He noted Corman Park has a full-time, two-man crew with a designated truck that collects dumped garbage throughout the municipality.
“They’re employed full-time at that particular job,” he said. “This is a cost borne by taxpayers, and it’s important to recover those costs.”
He noted that there are often environmental concerns associated with improper disposal of oil and other materials.
The Corman Park bylaw defines the offense of “dumping” as “any discarded or abandoned organic or inorganic material, including material or by-products discarded in a manufacturing or producing process; dirt; rocks, rubble; garbage, tree cuttings; grass; leaves; empty or partly empty tins; boxes, cartons, bottles and containers; discarded paper and fabrics; discarded household utensils; household furniture; household appliances of any nature; trees; concrete; or any other refuse, rubble, or matter.”