By Scott Harvey
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/ketr/local-ketr-974085.mp3
– Hunt County gets high praise from a statewide agency aimed at instructing officials on illegal dumping.
John Ockels is the director of the Texas Illegal Dumping Resource Center, based in Sherman.
The non-profit organization, now in its fifth year, conducts dozens of seminars each year that helps expose law enforcement and elected officials to illegal dumping laws.
"When police go to police academies they don't get trained on these particular laws, they're a little bit obscure," Ockels said. "When attorneys go to law school and wind up being prosecutors they don't get trained either. And when city managers go and get a master's in public administration they don't get trained either."
From a consumer perspective, Ockels says most citizens are aware of Texas illegal dumping laws, and a majority of violators are simply negligent in their handling of waste. He says the biggest reason one would violate the law is to save money.
For example, "Somebody's figured out; we're tearing down this building, if we dispose of it correctly it's going to cost $150,000 in landfill costs, let's just take it over to Hunt County and dump it and we probably won't get caught. Ockels continued, "Well, unknown to them Hunt County has an excellent environmental enforcement team and they probably will get caught."
While statistically it's tough to indicate just how big a problem illegal dumping may be in Texas, Ockels says that since his organization has begun educating local officials, he's noticed an increased amount of sophistication concerning the law. He credits Keep Texas Beautiful in their efforts, which has helped in the creation of Keep Commerce Beautiful and Keep Greenville Beautiful.
In May, the City of Commerce filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against a New Orleans-based real estate firm, alleging the company improperly disposed of material following a 2008 fire at their apartment complex along Live Oak Street. While litigation in the case continues, Fountainbleu Management Companies has already cleaned up some of the material that was reportedly lying around the facility.
"If you have a situation where you have waste and you need to get rid of it properly, because the law is pretty clear that if you don't dispose of it properly you're subject to criminal charges."
You can learn more on illegal dumping laws by visiting www.tidrc.com. Hear the full interview with John Ockels, a guest on Friday's edition of The Lead, by clicking play above.