People illegally dumping trash along the banks of the Cedar River - KCRG
People illegally dumping trash along the banks of the Cedar River
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) - A Cedar Rapids man said he is tired of people illegally dumping garbage along the banks of the Cedar River.
Bags of trash, tires, chairs, drywall, you name it, and there is probably a pile of it across the river from the Sac and Fox Trail. It’s located along Old River Road on the Southeast side of Cedar Rapids. That’s just East of the roller dam.
“It just makes me sick to my stomach,” said James Schminkey.
Schminkey’s family has owned property there for generations. He said it wasn’t uncommon for people to illegally dump trash here but said it has worsened over the last few years.
“There’s always a new load of trash around here,” he said. “Whether it’s tires, furniture, miscellaneous garbage.”
Schminkey said he had talked to the city of Cedar Rapids. He said the city cleaned up what it could along the roadway, but trash along the banks keeps showing up.
“It’s really starting to pile up,” he said. “Everywhere you look, there’s loads of trash.”
The city of Cedar Rapids said it was currently working on a complaint for these areas. A spokesperson for the city said the Solid Waste and Recycling Department handles these claims, but it can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months to come up with a solution. Schminkey, however, said it has gone on for far too long in a place meant for conservation.
“There aren’t very many places around the city anymore where it’s just nature,” said Schminkey. “It would be nice to have it just stay pristine and nice, and people are coming out here ruining it.”
The city said you should contact the police if you see someone dumping trash and contact the Waste and Recycling to collect dumped items.
Copyright 2024 KCRG. All rights reserved.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”