ACSO battling 400,000 gallons of illegal trash
Published 12:04 am Tuesday, March 11, 2014
NATCHEZ — Approximately 400,000 gallons of trash will be dumped on the sides of Adams County roads this year.
That figure is according to what inmate crews picked up last year in the county, Adams County Sheriff’s Office Major Charles Harrigill said.
Harrigill recently took over the county’s litter control program, which is now under the purview of the ACSO. After the resignation of the county’s litter control officer last year, the board of supervisors asked the sheriff’s office to handle the program.
Harrigill said crews picked up 6,200 40-gallon bags of trash on county-owned roads and 3,800 bags on state-owned roads that run through Adams County in 2013.
Harrigill said the county is on track to have the same amount of trash to pick up this year.
Illegal dumping at various sites around the county is also an ongoing problem for the county, Harrigill said.
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality has awarded grants to the county in the past to clean up illegal dumpsites, and Harrigill said the county is hoping to secure another grant this year.
Many illegal dumpsites, Harrigill said, are on private property, which makes the process to clean them up more complicated.
Notice has to be given to property owners to allow them to clean the property, Harrigill said. If the owner does not clean the property, the case can be sent through the court system, with property owners facing charges and fees for cleanup.
Adams County Board of Supervisors President Darryl Grennell said in an effort to previously curtail illegal dumping, the county set up two trash drop-off stations for residents to drop off their trash instead of dumping it.
The stations are located at 228 Foster Mound Road and 511-A Kingston Road.
The Foster Mound location accepts household garbage, including furniture and appliances, tires and limbs. The station is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.
The Kingston Road location accepts household garbage and tires. The station is open from noon to 7 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday and 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday.
Illegal dumpsites and littering are issues all of the county supervisors deal with in their respective districts, Grennell said.
Littering at the entrance of Broadmoor subdivision became such a problem in Grennell’s district it was made a permanent weekly stop on the inmate crews’ trash pickup route.
In addition to being unsightly and unhealthy, Grennell said litter also causes unnecessary expenses for the county. Although the county saves money by using inmate labor, Grennell said the county has to pay wages for employees to supervise the inmates, as well as the costs of fuel, trash bags and other materials.
“It’s unnecessary, and I don’t understand why people (litter),” he said.
It is difficult to catch someone littering or illegally dumping trash, Harrigill said, because it is often done secretively.
ACSO plans to install more game cameras throughout the county, Harrigill said, in an effort to catch people illegally dumping trash.
Harrigill said he believes the key to curbing the litter problem is education.
Harrigill plans to coordinate a program with local schools to educate children about the effects of littering.
Harrigill likened the program to efforts to educate people about seat belt legislation.
“Now, when I get in my car, my grandkids will tell me, ‘Grandpa, you’ve got to put your seat belt on,’” he said.
Harrigill is hoping for the same effect with litter education.
“It’s all about education, and we’ve got to start early,” he said. “We have to get in the schools and educate the children so they don’t litter and so they can tell their parents not to do it.”