Monterey County Herald article on Illegal Dumping on Former Fort Ord
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FORA ESCA Remediation Program
Jul 10, 2009, 1:09:10 PM7/10/09
to fort ord users, es...@fora.org
THE TRASHING OF FORT ORD: Effort aims to curb roadside dumps
By KEVIN HOWE
Herald Staff Writer
Updated: 07/10/2009 08:36:36 AM PDT
See full article with photographs at: http://www.montereyherald.com/ci_12808257?_requestid=258092
An illegal dump site at Fort Ord that was cleaned up 10 days ago is
once again littered with trash.
The latest littering includes furniture, a television set, buckets of
paint, a camper shell and household goods apparently delivered by a
pickup last week, said Gordon Smith of Monterey, who hikes the Fort
Ord trails with his dog Toby on a regular basis.
"The place looked so great when it got cleaned up," he said of the
Army-owned property at the end of Gigling Road near Eighth Avenue.
The next time he and Toby passed through, Smith said, they found
litter. And more litter.
Farther down a dirt road, Smith and his dog came across a pile of
cardboard moving boxes containing more castoffs, including a barbecue
and a bundle of magazines, bills, a Social Security statement and a
box of bank checks, all with the owner's name and address on them.
"That's the kind of evidence we need," said Rob Robinson of the Army's
Base Realignment and Closure office at Fort Ord.
Fighting illegal dumping has been a years-long battle since the post
closed in 1994. Similar piles of litter can be found at random spots
on and around Fort Ord land wherever a vehicle can pull over. Items
dumped range from refrigerators, mattresses and box springs to an
electric organ and a prefabricated shower stall.
"It's not just a Fort Ord problem," Robinson said. "It's countywide."
Road entrances have been locked with cables to prevent vehicles from
going into the back country, but sometimes trespassers ram their way
through them, he said.
Stan Cook, program manager for the Fort Ord Reuse Authority's
Environmental Services Cooperative Agreement cleanup program, said the
23,000-acre post has been carved up into a number of jurisdictions —
FORA, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, CSU-Monterey Bay and the
Army — which has made it difficult to assign responsibility for the
trash removal.
Until now.
The various Fort Ord agencies have signed on with the Monterey County
Illegal Dumping Task Force to coordinate cleanup and report and cite
violators.
Sheriff's deputies and the police agencies that patrol Fort Ord said
they will respond to reports of active illegal dumping, Cook said, and
the county Public Works Department will respond to remove dumped trash
piles that are discovered by hikers, cyclists, horseback riders and
other users of the trails.
In May, FORA began a program of marking legal public access corridors
and trails, and is in the process of posting "no dumping" signs, Cook
said.
Many of the items dumped at Fort Ord would be accepted for free at the
Monterey Regional Waste Management District facility in Marina,
including furniture, paint, solvents, clothing, household goods and
other items.
When dumped in the back country, paint, solvents and similar items are
considered hazardous materials and require special handling for
removal, Cook said.
Penalties for illegal dumping range from $250 to $4,000 in fines.
Anyone who sees dumping in progress is urged to call 911. Those
discovering dumped trash may call the county Public Works office at
755-4800, or report it online at www.keepmontereycountyclean.org.
The Reuse Authority is interested in organizing volunteer groups
involved in the use of Fort Ord lands for litter cleanup in areas that
have been cleared of military munitions left behind by the Army from
previous years.
Meanwhile, Cook said, "we have a lot of eyes out there" — volunteers
willing to report littering violations and vehicles on roads that have
been closed to them.
Kevin Howe can be reached at 646-4416 or kh...@montereyherald.com.
By KEVIN HOWE
Herald Staff Writer
Updated: 07/10/2009 08:36:36 AM PDT
See full article with photographs at: http://www.montereyherald.com/ci_12808257?_requestid=258092
An illegal dump site at Fort Ord that was cleaned up 10 days ago is
once again littered with trash.
The latest littering includes furniture, a television set, buckets of
paint, a camper shell and household goods apparently delivered by a
pickup last week, said Gordon Smith of Monterey, who hikes the Fort
Ord trails with his dog Toby on a regular basis.
"The place looked so great when it got cleaned up," he said of the
Army-owned property at the end of Gigling Road near Eighth Avenue.
The next time he and Toby passed through, Smith said, they found
litter. And more litter.
Farther down a dirt road, Smith and his dog came across a pile of
cardboard moving boxes containing more castoffs, including a barbecue
and a bundle of magazines, bills, a Social Security statement and a
box of bank checks, all with the owner's name and address on them.
"That's the kind of evidence we need," said Rob Robinson of the Army's
Base Realignment and Closure office at Fort Ord.
Fighting illegal dumping has been a years-long battle since the post
closed in 1994. Similar piles of litter can be found at random spots
on and around Fort Ord land wherever a vehicle can pull over. Items
dumped range from refrigerators, mattresses and box springs to an
electric organ and a prefabricated shower stall.
"It's not just a Fort Ord problem," Robinson said. "It's countywide."
Road entrances have been locked with cables to prevent vehicles from
going into the back country, but sometimes trespassers ram their way
through them, he said.
Stan Cook, program manager for the Fort Ord Reuse Authority's
Environmental Services Cooperative Agreement cleanup program, said the
23,000-acre post has been carved up into a number of jurisdictions —
FORA, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, CSU-Monterey Bay and the
Army — which has made it difficult to assign responsibility for the
trash removal.
Until now.
The various Fort Ord agencies have signed on with the Monterey County
Illegal Dumping Task Force to coordinate cleanup and report and cite
violators.
Sheriff's deputies and the police agencies that patrol Fort Ord said
they will respond to reports of active illegal dumping, Cook said, and
the county Public Works Department will respond to remove dumped trash
piles that are discovered by hikers, cyclists, horseback riders and
other users of the trails.
In May, FORA began a program of marking legal public access corridors
and trails, and is in the process of posting "no dumping" signs, Cook
said.
Many of the items dumped at Fort Ord would be accepted for free at the
Monterey Regional Waste Management District facility in Marina,
including furniture, paint, solvents, clothing, household goods and
other items.
When dumped in the back country, paint, solvents and similar items are
considered hazardous materials and require special handling for
removal, Cook said.
Penalties for illegal dumping range from $250 to $4,000 in fines.
Anyone who sees dumping in progress is urged to call 911. Those
discovering dumped trash may call the county Public Works office at
755-4800, or report it online at www.keepmontereycountyclean.org.
The Reuse Authority is interested in organizing volunteer groups
involved in the use of Fort Ord lands for litter cleanup in areas that
have been cleared of military munitions left behind by the Army from
previous years.
Meanwhile, Cook said, "we have a lot of eyes out there" — volunteers
willing to report littering violations and vehicles on roads that have
been closed to them.
Kevin Howe can be reached at 646-4416 or kh...@montereyherald.com.
Larry Hampson
Jul 13, 2009, 12:04:28 AM7/13/09
to fortor...@googlegroups.com
I've ridden my bicycle on and off-road a lot in Ft. Ord, but have not caught
up with the dumpers. Although I do still miss the the middle-of-nowhere
auto chairs and stereo set-up on the ridge south of Watkins Gate Road, most
of the garbage is quite unsightly. Do the dumpers have a pattern? Time of
day or year?
up with the dumpers. Although I do still miss the the middle-of-nowhere
auto chairs and stereo set-up on the ridge south of Watkins Gate Road, most
of the garbage is quite unsightly. Do the dumpers have a pattern? Time of
day or year?
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