Residents raise concerns after noticing disturbing trend on city streets: 'Both ugly and dangerous'

Residents in Birmingham, Alabama, are raising concerns about the significant amount of garbage people are dumping around the city.

What's happening?

Birmingham is known for events like the Sidewalk Film Festival and the Birmingham Artwalk, but it's also known as one of the dirtiest major cities in the country, at least according to one study that ranked it No. 8.

AL.com reported illegal waste dumping has become a significant occurrence in Birmingham, nearby cities, and unincorporated areas, with residents complaining about garbage thousands of times last year.

These complaints included bags of clothing dumped near parks, abandoned homes turned into dumping sites, and wooded areas converted into trash pits.

Jefferson County, where Birmingham is located, has stated that "illegal dumping is both ugly and dangerous."

Why is illegal dumping harmful?

Dumping waste illegally has numerous consequences, all of which are harmful. 

Not only is garbage dumped in random places a tremendous eyesore that can affect property values, but taxpayers are most often on the hook for paying to have that waste cleaned up. Likewise, if someone tosses trash onto private land, the landowner may be responsible for the associated cleanup costs.

Additionally, as one person who complained about the dumping pointed out, illegally dumped waste contaminates nearby drinking water. Chemicals, microplastics, and other toxins can leach from garbage into water and soil, impacting water cleanliness and soil health as well as leading to illness among residents.

Garbage dumped in random places also attracts a variety of pests and wildlife, some of which may be dangerous. Mosquitoes and rats drawn to trash-filled areas can carry life-threatening diseases. Wildlife attracted to garbage can include raccoons, snakes, and wild dogs, all of which can increase uncleanliness by strewing waste further, and some of which may attack humans.

What's being done about illegal waste dumping in Birmingham?

Illegal waste dumping in Alabama is a Class B misdemeanor, which means a conviction comes with significant fines and up to 100 hours of community service. 

Birmingham has also instated a three-pronged approach to tackling litter. The first involves cleanups at least once a month, done with help from local communities. The next prong involves increasing public education and starting it earlier with school-age children, while the third involves increasing enforcement, such as catching and prosecuting those who dump waste.

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