Ladysmith proudly bills itself as being one of B.C.’s greenest communities.
But you’d have a hard time convincing about 100 volunteers of that fact this weekend.
Those volunteers spent six or eight hours Saturday in the backwoods around Ladysmith gathering more than 11 tons of garbage dumped off local logging roads.
Four of those tons were collected off Peerless Road, meaning the culprits drove past the town’s waste transfer centre on their way to do their dirty deeds.
Dave Judson, volunteer co-ordinator of the event for the Ladysmith Sportsmen’s Club, was shaking his head at the irony.
“We’ve won awards for being green,” Judson said. “It’s like we’re sweeping the dirt under the carpet. A third of what we picked up was right past our brand-new dump facility.”
Illegal backwoods dumping is nothing new. Unfortunately, the issue seems to be growing.
The club used to host the volunteer clean-up every second year, but ramped it up to yearly four years ago.
The past four years, clean-up crews have pulled out about seven tons. This year, the total grew by a third.
“Seventy-five percent of what we picked up is totally recyclable,” Judson said.
He said one pile off Peerless Road appeared to be from Thetis Island.
His conclusion is someone was likely headed to the dump with good intentions, found the dump closed, and kept driving.
He would like to see two changes made in an attempt to address the problem: waiving tipping fees in favour of a fee added to everyone’s property taxes so cost isn’t a factor; and increased hours at the Peerless Road Waste Transfer Centre to maximize convenience.
“Up in Quesnel, they’re open 24-7, day and night and that keeps them out of the bush.”
The positive side of the issue is all the volunteer dedication poured into addressing it.
Club members and their families were joined by representatives from Search and Rescue, TimberWest, conservation officers, backhoe operators and random citizens.
According to Judson, the 100 volunteers has been a pretty typical turnout.
Those taking part are united in their desire to keep our wilderness clean and accessible to the public.
“I’m glad to be part of it,” he said. “Thank God for volunteers.”
