A 22-year-old man in Ocala, Florida, was arrested on a felony charge after allegedly illegally dumping over 3,000 pounds of trash, Ocala-News.com reported.
On Feb. 4, a code enforcement officer discovered a large dump site by the intersection of 72nd Terrace and 144th Street Road. What led the officer to the culprit? A box with a name and an address among the piles of garbage. Law enforcement later realized there were two dump sites — one to the east and the other on the west side of 144th Street Road.
The name and address on the box belonged to the mother of Reynaldo Chicha. After his arrest and detention at Marion County Jail, authorities charged him with dumping litter over 500 pounds, Ocala-News.com reported. Chicha was released after paying a $5,000 bail and was awaiting a court date as of late March.
According to the police report, Chicha confirmed to officers that he had dumped trash at the sites.
A Marion County Sheriff's Office deputy stated the pile was decomposing "having been in the elements for at least one month." After collecting, transporting to a landfill, and weighing the trash, authorities said it came to a massive 3,360 pounds.
Unfortunately, illegal trash dumping is more common than some realize, despite the availability of landfills, recycling facilities, and pickup services — not to mention hefty fines imposed on those caught in the act.
One man in the U.K. was fined the equivalent of around $6,600 and sentenced to 110 hours of community service for dumping refrigerators, wood, plastic, and other materials. Another man who dumped waste in the Dyfi Forest in Wales received a fine equivalent to $2,923.
One TikToker even confronted another hiker after witnessing her litter on a trail, while some homeowners have struggled to protect their property from becoming open dumpsters.
The United States alone created as much as 292.4 million tons of trash in 2018, per the Environmental Protection Agency. As that waste sits in landfills releasing heat-trapping gases, it can take years — sometimes hundreds of them — to break down.
Many items also leach toxic chemicals into the soil. Meanwhile, trash scattered on hiking trails can strangle wildlife or choke creatures that mistake it for food. Dumping grounds also create havens for pests like snakes and disease-carrying rodents, and these creatures can eventually invade homes and drive down neighborhood value.
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