In 2016, District 2 Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore championed a drive to regulate the countyโs donation bins, many of which were becoming unsightly junkyards. The idea was to keep a closer eye on the dumping.
If that crusade was the eyes, then the countyโs latest project is the teeth. Moore has helped push through a plan to rid the county of all illegal dumping, as part of a new #PascoProud campaign.
โItโs time to fight back on this,โ Moore says, adding that since October, there have been 144 code complaints filed by county residents over illegal dumping. But, the countyโs trash ordinance, โdidnโt have a lot of teeth to it,โ Moore says, so the county took a look at adopting the stateโs more stringent rules, which carry stiffer penalties.
Those penalties include heftier fines, and even arrest, for those illegally dumping on county property. Moore says that those who get arrested can be charged with a misdemeanor or, depending on the violation, a third-degree felony.
Anyone caught dumping illegally in Pasco County can be fined a maximum of $500 per day, per item, as well as possible cleanup costs.
Commercial companies that get caught dumping automatically get charged a third-degree felony, even if itโs something like discarding empty paint buckets on the side of the road.
โDumping costs taxpayers thousands and thousands of dollars a year to clean up the mess,โ Moore says. โAnd, itโs not good for the environment.โ
The countyโs secret weapon in this latest crusade is the local community.
The countyโs popular MyPasco app now has a link to report illegal dumping. Users of the app can take a picture of the dump sites, or someone dumping materials, or even a license plate, and send the picture right to the county via the app.
The county also has created a website โ bit.ly/2Bj6CUz โ so residents can report illegal dumping, as well as an email address (RIDPasco@pascocountyfl.net) and phone number (727-847-2411) that can be used to make reports.
Moore said the app and website received 87 tips the first week of the program.
โWe triage all that info, and if it looks legit, it goes right to the (Pasco County) Sheriffโs Office,โ Moore says. โWe want this to be a team effort between the community and the county.โ
Moore says that illegal dumping takes place in Wesley Chapel, as public land and dead-end roads are targeted. He said the problem is widespread, however.
โThereโs a road in the Lutz area, an access road that so much dumping has taken place on that you literally have to weave in and out of trash to drive the road,โ he says.
Moore wouldnโt mention specific trouble spots, including one in Wesley Chapel because some are under video camera surveillance. But, he thinks the countyโs current approach will yield positive results. The MyPasco app already has received a number of tips since the initiative has gone into effect.
โIt is happening in Wesley Chapel,โ Moore says. โYou typically donโt see it when driving on normal roads and main thoroughfares, but you do see it on some dead-end roads and some public lands. If people see it, we encourage them to report it. Donโt engage the person doing it. Use the tools we are providing.โ