By Cheryl Jahn

Bring Illegal Dumping To An End: Conservation Officers Service

Mar 16, 2018 | 3:38 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – The local Conservation Officers Service went before the Board for the Regional of District of Fraser Fort George with a message it hopes the directors will take back to their communities: illegal dumping has to stop.
The Officer in Charge of the Omineca, Inspector Mark West, says there are a lot of reasons people opt to dump their waste illegally, but there are just as many reasons they shouldn’t.
“It can hurt our water courses if its a liquid-type of dumping, a lot of the chemicals could be injected by wildlife,” he says. “As you’ve seen many times with garbage out in the middle of nowhere with stuff wrapped in [a deer’s] antlers.”
He says it can also harm the environment, as well as create an eyesore for outdoor enthusiasts, something City Councillor Brian Skakun is. He has brought up the issue of illegal dumping frequently, but it seems to fall on deaf ears. But, he has a plan.
I’ll probably introduce a Notice of Motion to Council in the next couple of months, directing Administration to get together with the Regional District and come up with some comprehensive plan, maybe look at tipping fees, the availability of the transfer stations and a number of things. Because, whatever we’re doing, it isn’t working.”
Isp West says the best way to enforce illegal dumping is early detection and reporting, as well as accurate information. 
“All investigations related to dumping as well as any environmental concerns, such as fish and wildlife, are all important to us and we do follow up on all of them.”