Kent Kehoe, with the Vernon ATV Club, uses a quad to remove garbage from the King Edward Forest Road.

Kent Kehoe, with the Vernon ATV Club, uses a quad to remove garbage from the King Edward Forest Road.

ATV club uncovers rural dump sites in Coldstream

Members of the Vernon ATV Club recently tackled garbage along the King Edward Forest Road

A section of the bush is a little cleaner thanks to some dedicated volunteers.

Members of the Vernon ATV Club recently tackled garbage along the King Edward Forest Road, from Highway 6 to the King Edward Lake, Bear Lake and Kaiser Bill Lake recreation sites.

“It’s disappointing and surprising the lengths people will drive into the bush to dump,” said Clint Ingham, club president

The amount of trash collected weighed 2,800 pounds and filled five trucks.

Items included mattresses, TVs, household waste, construction material, furniture, exercise machines, bottles, cans, a burned travel trailer and hundreds of shotgun shells.

There is a concern that household waste could attract wildlife, while metal and other sharp pieces could pose a risk to recreational users and livestock.

“A cow could get cut up on it,” said Ingham, adding there is no need for illegal dumping.

“When I go to the landfill, I always find it affordable.”

Anyone who comes across illegal dumping can call the Report all Poachers and Polluters hotline at 1-877-952-7277 or #7277 on the Telus network.

 

Vernon Morning Star