​We’re posting this story to draw attention to the important issue of illegal dumping. Illegal dumping is a crime. It’s unsightly, and can seriously impact the health and welfare of families who depend on well water for their drinking supply. Below is an email from Lieutenant Bill Gale, who, together with others mentioned below, spearheaded this successful cleanup.

The PBSO Environmental Crimes unit received a complaint about illegal dumping at the 6800 block of Wallis Road.

This area is known for having multiple trucks stopped on the road waiting to drop refuse at the Waste Management and Coastal Recycle facilities. The significant traffic of semi-trucks and the fact they park alongside the road or on the swale has destroyed the road shoulder and the swale and facilitated the illegal dumping of motor oil, used tractor-trailer tires, and other refuse in the area. Most of these items can be attributed to Mobile Mechanics who work on these trucks while waiting to pick up or drop off refuse; these mechanics dump the waste on the side road/swale.

One of the primary motives behind illegal dumping is the desire to evade the costs associated with proper waste disposal. Dumping waste in authorized facilities can be expensive, especially for businesses or individuals generating large quantities of garbage. In an attempt to save money, some unscrupulous entities resort to illegal dumping, which not only harms the environment but also undermines fair competition in waste management industries.

The PBSO Environmental Crimes Unit actively works to combat this problem by educating and apprehending the individuals responsible for these unlawful activities.

After assessing the situation of this small stretch of a County Road,  The Environmental Crimes Unit spearheaded a multi-agency task force to deal with this problem. With the assistance of PBSO Correction Inmates, Palm Beach County Code Enforcement, PBC Road and Bridges Department, and Solid Waste Authority, Detectives from Environmental Crimes conducted a cleanup of the area on Monday, May 8th. A total of 40,500 lbs. of garbage and debris were removed, 84 tractor-trailer tires, 280 gallons of used motor oil, and over 30 used oil filters.

Our Detectives took upon this huge task, and the results were impressive.

We need the assistance from our Citizens to call in and report illegal dumping; most of these locations are away from populated areas or have slow vehicle/foot traffic at certain hours of the day/week. The collaboration between law enforcement, environmental organizations, and waste management companies is vital to curbing this detrimental practice and preserving the environment for future generations, but without our citizens promptly reporting any suspicious activities or sites of illegal dumping, it might be too late to revert some of the devastating effects like soil and wildlife contamination,  water pollution (we still have a lot of properties on well-water in the county) and public health.

This project has not ended with the cleanup; now, the enforcement part it’s on full blast to keep the area clean.

You can do your part to stop illegal dumping by immediately reporting any activity you see. If you live in a municipality, contact your local law enforcement agency. If not, contact the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office at 561-688-3000. Once a report has been filed, contact the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County at 866-SWA-INFO (866-792-4636) and provide the case number.