April 22-28, 2004

cityspace

The Dirty Dozen

Amy L. Webb

Some of the most-littered areas of Pennsylvania aren’t along the highway. They’re not parking lots. Not even abandoned, burned-out building shells.

They’re state parks -- and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) has just released its annual "Dirty Dozen" list.

In total, the department has identified approximately 300 illegal dumpsites throughout the state.

To make the cut, illegal dumpsites were surveyed for bottles and cans, rotting food, tires, ratty furniture and rusted appliances as part of the DCNR’s program. In all, the DCNR found 750 tons of debris -- that’s 1.5 million pounds of garbage.

"Dumping waste in a state park is illegal activity," says Gretchen A. Leslie, DCNR spokeswoman. "Not only does it spoil the scenic areas, it threatens the water supply and wildlife population. For example, people dump motor oil and metals. The material contained in that trash can seep into the ground water, and many people in the state rely on that water supply for their drinking water."

Leslie says that people tend to dump in state parks because of convenience. "Dumping happens in more rural areas of state where people do not have access to curbside pickups or pickup of large items," she says. "They don’t know what to do. So instead of taking the garbage to landfill and paying, they’ll just leave it in a park for free."

It’s not free, of course. Illegal dumping, depending on the site, can mean up to $25,000 in fines and up to 90 days’ imprisonment.

Sites included Gallitzin State Forest, Jacobsburg State Park, Michaux State Forest, Moshannon State Forest, Neshaminy State Park, Rothrock State Forest, Tuscarora State Forest (Mifflin County), Tuscarora State Forest (Perry County), Sproul State Forest, Tiadaghton State Forest, Valley Forge State Forest (Delaware County) and Valley Forge State Forest (Chester County).

At Valley Forge in Delaware County, in Tinicum Township, some cleanup efforts have removed debris, but an estimated 80 tons of trash remain in and around the Delaware River. During high tide or flooding, trash from the water overflows up onto Little Tinicum Island.

The DCNR has been working with PA CleanWays, a nonprofit anti-dumping organization, to conduct surveys and recruit volunteers to help clean sites.

"Trash begets trash," Leslie says. "People tend to dump in dirty areas. But the cleanup effort is working. Once we clean up a site, we find that it is really not being trashed again."

The DCNR has so far worked with contractors and 2,000 volunteers to clean 220 dumpsites. Together, they have removed 2,800 tons of household trash, 23,000 tires, 280 tons of scrap metal and 640 tons of concrete from public and state-protected lands.

For more information call 877-7-PA-FOREST or visit www.cleanpaforests.org.