Skip to content

Opinion: Burnaby says it’s cracking down on dumpers. I have doubts

This blog has expended a lot of words about dumpers taking a giant, uh, dump all over our beautiful city. Aside from the sight pollution, dumpers have ended up putting the lives of people and bears in danger.
illegal dumping garbage
SIte of an illegal dump in Burnaby. The city says it has to send out up to four garbage trucks a day to clean these sites up.

This blog has expended a lot of words about dumpers taking a giant, uh, dump all over our beautiful city.

Aside from the sight pollution, dumpers have ended up putting the lives of people and bears in danger. Garbage – especially food scraps – attract bears.

A City of Burnaby news release about changes to its Solid Waste & Recycling Bylaw on Tuesday vows to deal with these scoundrels.

“As part of the effort to limit human-bear interactions, the city will also be stepping up enforcement on illegal dumping and littering,” said the city’s statement.

I’m not sure what “stepping up enforcement” will look like, but I have my doubts about its effectiveness. I’m sure the city is trying to do more, but dumpers are just so bloody hard to catch. Many of them operate in the middle of the night and on isolated streets.

I’m also curious why the city is now “stepping up” efforts when dumping has been such a big problem for many years.

I urge all Burnaby residents to be more vigilant in spotting illegal dumpers and reporting them to the authorities.

But local residents also need to be better when it comes to their garbage and, for homeowners who have fruit trees, cleaning up their yards.

Together, we can make our community a better place and a safer for bears and humans.

Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.