Johnson County dump site overloaded with illegal trash
GREENWOOD, Ind. (WISH) — People living in Johnson county say they’re fed up with the overwhelming amount of trash taking over the county’s main recycling site.
County officials are warning those behind the illegal dumping to stop.
Greenwood resident Carol Lee Garland struggled to find a place to put her trash Wednesday. It’s something that’s happening all too often at the Emmanuel Church drop-off site. It’s at 1640 Stones Crossing Road West.
Crews pick up trash five to six times a week. That doesn’t stop illegal dumpers from littering the area with trash that often blows into a neighboring apartment complex.
“I’ve picked up a few things myself,” Garland said. “Little things. It’s just sad that people don’t care enough.”
“I’ve seen it where I cannot believe the amount of trash that’s been dumped here,” Greenwood resident John Hefner said. “Knowing the fact that somebody has to pick it up, that’s the sad thing.”
The items people are ditching aren’t your every day recyclable.
“Sometimes it’s furniture, sometimes it’s extra trash unfortunately,” Greenwood resident Hannah Mueller said. “But, it’s the only site available around here that I like to drop off my recyclables.”
It’s an issue that’s not only unsightly, but also illegal. County officials said the dumping is the worst it has ever been.
“The month of April we saw the largest amount we have ever seen up there,” Jessie Biggerman, the executive director of the Johnson Recycling District, said. “We saw well over 30 tons of just paper and cardboard alone. We saw 56 tons of co-mingled. That’s double any amount we have ever had at the district.”
To curb the problem, Biggerman said her office plans to add five more bins to the current site.
It’s a solution she said is like putting a Band-Aid on a gaping wound. People must step up and do their part to keep the trash site clean.
“We know that we are getting five more bins worth of material,” Biggerman said. “We can’t just keep adding bins and adding bins. That’s not an answer.”
Biggerman said if these bins are full, wait to drop off your trash and break down big things like boxes so they take up less space.
For more drop-off locations in Johnson County, click here.