Eliminating garbage from being dumped (poll added)

[buglebrush]

In Idaho there is no garbage (appliances, couches, TV's) dumped in the mountains. The reason for no garbage is that the landfill and garbage pickup is part of everyone's property taxes. In addition to garbage pickup I am allowed to take a couple tons of garbage to the county landfill each year at no extra charge. Because garbage is prepaid with property taxes there is no reason for people to dump in the mountains and the result is a much cleaner environment.

I'm thinking this would be a better approach in Washington. Maybe people would quit dumping junk and garbage in the mountains if they could simply take it to the landfill. Maybe this would prevent further loss of recreational access to private and public lands.

Any thoughts!

Having lived in both states I can tell you this makes an enormous difference!  Also, in Washington you can't burn plywood, dimensional lumber, etc...     I have little piles of scrap sitting behind my shop that would've gone to the landfill months ago when I lived in Idaho.  Also, for those of you worrying about property tax increases my property tax rates were much lower in Idaho even with free landfill use.  I did construction, and we hauled everything to the landfill ( except what we burned)  Never paid a dime either

[Boss .300 winmag]

In Idaho there is no garbage (appliances, couches, TV's) dumped in the mountains. The reason for no garbage is that the landfill and garbage pickup is part of everyone's property taxes. In addition to garbage pickup I am allowed to take a couple tons of garbage to the county landfill each year at no extra charge. Because garbage is prepaid with property taxes there is no reason for people to dump in the mountains and the result is a much cleaner environment.

I'm thinking this would be a better approach in Washington. Maybe people would quit dumping junk and garbage in the mountains if they could simply take it to the landfill. Maybe this would prevent further loss of recreational access to private and public lands.

Any thoughts!

Having lived in both states I can tell you this makes an enormous difference!  Also, in Washington you can't burn plywood, dimensional lumber, etc...     I have little piles of scrap sitting behind my shop that would've gone to the landfill months ago when I lived in Idaho.  Also, for those of you worrying about property tax increases my property tax rates were much lower in Idaho even with free landfill use.  I did construction, and we hauled everything to the landfill ( except what we burned)  Never paid a dime either

Yep I can see WA lower our taxes and then giving us dumping privileges . 

[bearpaw]

At first I was not happy about garbage being added to my property taxes in Idaho, but after seeing how convenient it is to get rid of garbage and yard debri and how much Idaho has benefitted verses Washington's significant garbage problem, I am now a big proponent of the idea.

Perhaps legislators could write a bill including can/bottle deposits and adding garbage to property taxes?

I would really like to hear additional comments?

[TheHunt]

I think Washington needs to put our prison folks to work.

Even in the landfill they should dump the garbage and have the prisoners sort the stuff that individuals did not recycle. 

They would get nothing for it but good conduct points.

[bearpaw]

I think Washington needs to put our prison folks to work.

Even in the landfill they should dump the garbage and have the prisoners sort the stuff that individuals did not recycle. 

They would get nothing for it but good conduct points.

I like this idea too! 

[jackmaster]

I think Washington needs to put our prison folks to work.

Even in the landfill they should dump the garbage and have the prisoners sort the stuff that individuals did not recycle. 

They would get nothing for it but good conduct points.

I like this idea too! 

hell yeah, thats a great idea, my bet though all the friggin bleeding hearts would say its demeaning and embarrassing, but its ok for them to steal and rape and murder and what not..... actually here by my work, des moines uses prisoners to weed whack and other stuff, the inmates look forward to the work detail, i guess i would to if i was locked the hell up everyday.... i agree 100% though, we should use them its free labor and they can use it to payback their free room and board

[Jingles]

I can understand why there is a lot of stuff dumped beside the roads and not taken to the transfer station at least here locally with a  minimum fee of 13.50 who in this economically challenged time is going to pay 13.50 to get rid of 1 or 2  garbage bags of stuff when they can just throw it out the trunk on their way from the campsite.
I think a couple of the ideas expressed here make perfect sense.
 Put small dumpsters at the trail heads. So what if they are used by non hikers it is keeping the trash out of the woods
Reduce the fees at the transfer stations to say 1.00 per bag or 5.00 per pickup load
Also the idea of deposits on all beverage bottles and cans is an excellent idea worked in Michigan where folks actually made extra spending money picking up those thrown beside the road and if memory serves me right the first couple of years in MI they paid the refund on all bottles and cans regardless of whether they were marked return for deposit or not just to get them picked up.
I would also like to add that it isn't just beside the roads and at trail heads where they trash is being dumped Numerous times I have packed out bags of crap collected well into the wilderness and along the trails or from where a deer hunting camp was located and the hunters attempted to hide the stuff away from camp.

[Knocker of rocks]

I think Washington needs to put our prison folks to work.

Even in the landfill they should dump the garbage and have the prisoners sort the stuff that individuals did not recycle. 

They would get nothing for it but good conduct points.

I like this idea too! 

hell yeah, thats a great idea, my bet though all the friggin bleeding hearts would say its demeaning and embarrassing, but its ok for them to steal and rape and murder and what not..... actually here by my work, des moines uses prisoners to weed whack and other stuff, the inmates look forward to the work detail, i guess i would to if i was locked the hell up everyday.... i agree 100% though, we should use them its free labor and they can use it to payback their free room and board

I commonly see corrections inmates cleaning up 522.  So I guess I don't see why your little diatribe about the "bleeding hearts" has a place in this discussion, except as a vehicle for you to show off that chip on your shoulder

[CAMPMEAT]

My wife even brings home her used toilet paper home to burn...........now that's dedication......seriously, she does. Kinda creeps me out since she forgets it and it's in my truck for a month...........

[Elkaholic daWg]

I think Washington needs to put our prison folks to work.

Even in the landfill they should dump the garbage and have the prisoners sort the stuff that individuals did not recycle. 

They would get nothing for it but good conduct points.

I like this idea too! 

hell yeah, thats a great idea, my bet though all the friggin bleeding hearts would say its demeaning and embarrassing, but its ok for them to steal and rape and murder and what not..... actually here by my work, des moines uses prisoners to weed whack and other stuff, the inmates look forward to the work detail, i guess i would to if i was locked the hell up everyday.... i agree 100% though, we should use them its free labor and they can use it to payback their free room and board

I commonly see corrections inmates cleaning up 522.  So I guess I don't see why your little diatribe about the "bleeding hearts" has a place in this discussion, except as a vehicle for you to show off that chip on your shoulder

 Those are county corrections inmates. State would take an act of god . But they do have fire fighting groups out of Monroe. Seen 'em at work in our back yard in 2004

[bearpaw]

There have been additional ideas posted. THANKS

Remember, funding is always an issue, most ideas will need a funding source to be implemented. I added a poll, please vote for any options you like. You can change your vote if desired at any time.

I will add any new ideas that are posted in this topic.

[bigtex]

Regarding the penalty selection, realistically the penalties already have the potential to be stiff.

There are only two "ticketable" litter offenses which don't require a visit before a judge:

1- Littering less than or equal to one cubic foot is currently a Class 3 civil infraction with a fine/ticket of $103. This year the legislature reclassified the offense as a Class 2 infraction and it will take effect next month and the fine will be increased to a little over $250.

2- Discarding "potentially dangerous litter" is a Class 1 civil infraction with a legislatively adopted fine of $1,025. Potentially dangerous litter" means litter that is likely to injure a person or cause damage to a vehicle or other property. "Potentially dangerous litter" means:(a) Cigarettes, cigars, or other tobacco products that are capable of starting a fire; (b) Glass; (c) A container or other product made predominantly or entirely of glass; (d) A hypodermic needle or other medical instrument designed to cut or pierce; (e) Raw human waste, including soiled baby diapers, regardless of whether or not the waste is in a container of any sort; and (f) Nails or tacks.

Now littering outside of those two circumstances require a mandatory court date.

It is a misdemeanor for a person to litter in an amount greater than one cubic foot but less than one cubic yard. The person shall also pay a litter cleanup restitution payment equal to twice the actual cost of cleanup, or fifty dollars per cubic foot of litter, whichever is greater. The court shall distribute one-half of the restitution payment to the landowner and one-half of the restitution payment to the law enforcement agency investigating the incident. The court may, in addition to or in lieu of part or all of the cleanup restitution payment, order the person to pick up and remove litter from the property, with prior permission of the legal owner or, in the case of public property, of the agency managing the property. The court may suspend or modify the litter cleanup restitution payment for a first-time offender under this section, if the person cleans up and properly disposes of the litter.

It is a gross misdemeanor for a person to litter in an amount of one cubic yard or more. The person shall also pay a litter cleanup restitution payment equal to twice the actual cost of cleanup, or one hundred dollars per cubic foot of litter, whichever is greater. The court shall distribute one-half of the restitution payment to the landowner and one-half of the restitution payment to the law enforcement agency investigating the incident. The court may, in addition to or in lieu of part or all of the cleanup restitution payment, order the person to pick up and remove litter from the property, with prior permission of the legal owner or, in the case of public property, of the agency managing the property. The court may suspend or modify the litter cleanup restitution payment for a first-time offender under this section, if the person cleans up and properly disposes of the litter.

Again, this is another one for me where a mandatory minimum penalty needs to come into play. For the misdemeanor offense you can be fined for criminal penalties $0-1,000 and 90 days in jail plus the cleanup costs. The gross misdemeanor criminal penalties are $0-5,000 and 364 days in jail plus the cleanup costs.

Just in my experience, the criminal fines are suspended (be a good boy for a month/year) and the cleanup restitution are suspended as well.

Like I said, the potential is there already, it's just up to the judge/prosecutor to actually use their heads...

[Knocker of rocks]

 Those are county corrections inmates. State would take an act of god .

Sorry, but no.

WDOC

[Tbar]

I don't like it but both public and private land owners are backed into a corner by illegal dumping.  They are more or less forced to gate their land (I think this could have been another option as it is the most popular one employed in WW).
 I would like to see a volunteer (cleanup) x number of hours in exchange for access to gated land.  If I had a parcel of any size I think I would be forced to gate it. I do like the idea of using prison workers also. 

[Southpole]

How does it work for renters, people who don't pay property taxes?

  Property owner is paying the property taxes, so the renter would be allowed their set weight limit based on their address.

   I think this is a good idea - until the filthy politicians get their mits on another source of income, suck it dry and then say they need more $$ 'for the safety of _______" or "for the kids to get _______" or "in order to continue providing ______" - eventually it wouldn't get the funding required and we'd be in the same boat with higher property taxes. 

I don't think Washington St. is responsible enough to handle extra tax monies and allocate it to garbage management for the whole state. They can't manage the basics as it is. I agree with Mark_436, they'll some how screw it up and use the tax dollars else where.