Dump Clean Up: Ideas and Tips

Illegal solid waste dumping survives in many parts of the U.S., especially in remote areas where there is no one around to see and report what's happening. But even in the best of neighborhoods, somehow a few tires wind up in the brush by the creek just because someone wanted to avoid a few dollars of environmental disposal fee, I suppose.

So it's a problem. Sometimes a community is organizing to clean up a huge mound of stuff that's been there for years, but never caught the attention of a major regulatory agency. A pile of junk still is an eyesore and probably a health hazard from rats or other such pests. Chemicals and heavy metals also may be leaching out into the groundwater as items slowly decompose over time.

In rural areas, the "dump" may be on private property, through no real fault of the property owner. Just the remoteness of the location made it a place that people took advantage of.

It's also part of the rural tradition in many places that one simply moves the trash that won't burn off to a faraway corner of the property because that is the only option available. Over time this can become a considerable issue, and then if a neighbor moves in or a health hazard develops, suddenly the traditional way doesn't seem as reasonable any more.

So there are many reasons to be cleaning up a dump. Please use the form below to brag a little bit about your successful cleanup of such a place, to tell us how you organized it, what it took to accomplish the goal, and how you would suggest that others take on the challenge.

If we can just get this started, you'll be able to see also what others have contributed. Photos too!

Explain Your Dump Clean Up Project

If you did a dump clean up project, the world needs your best tips. Tell us how many people you used, how you found volunteers (or if you paid someone, how did you manage that?), what safety precautions and equipment were necessary, how much time it took, and what you would do differently next time.

How do you think this dump started? Was it a formal dump that everyone knew about, or was it more of a place where people just began throwing out things? How are you trying to assure that the site stays clean and that people stop dumping there? Would you do it again?

If you have "before" and "after" photos, or either one, our visitors would like to see them.

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