THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, January 4, 1997 TAG: 9701040352
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY NANCY LEWIS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 63 lines
About 30 people have been arrested and prosecuted since the city passed new, more stringent laws last spring that crack down on illegal dumping.
The ordinance raised the maximum penalty from $250 for a class 4 misdemeanor to a $2,500 fine and a year in jail. The new ordinance makes dumping of any kind a class 1 misdemeanor, said Deputy City Attorney Cynthia Hall.
Dealing more harshly with violators will put an end to cases like that involving two men who, a couple of years ago, dumped 10,000 tires into a drinking water reservoir in Norfolk and walked out of court with only a $250 littering fine, Hall said.
All dumping, including acts once thought of as littering - throwing a piece of paper out a car window, for example - are now illegal dumping in the eyes of the new law, Hall said.
The most severe penalty imposed since the new regulations went into effect on May 31 was a year in jail to a contractor who was caught dumping construction debris, Hall said Friday.
In another case, a contractor failed to remove debris he had dumped illegally after being told to do so. He was given six months' jail time, according to Hall. An individual who dumped oil down a storm drain got 30 days in jail and a fine of more than $1,000 and was ordered to perform community service.
Norfolk's punishments are the toughest in South Hampton Roads cities, Hall said. ``Norfolk is the only South Hampton Roads city that has an illegal-dumping code section at the present time.''
Budgetary cuts at the state and federal levels resulted in lax enforcement of state and federal codes, Hall said, so Norfolk decided to take action. Two years ago, the city formed an Environmental Crime Task Force with members from its fire, police, health and storm water management departments. Nine environmental initiative ordinances were passed May 14.
The effort has been so successful that other Virginia cities are in the process of adopting codes modeled on Norfolk's, Hall said.
Warning signs have been posted at sites where dumping has occurred in the past, including the 1100 to 1500 blocks of St. Julian Avenue in Barraud Park, the 2600 to 2800 blocks of Villa Circle in Villa Heights, the 500 block of Naval Base Road in Cottage Road Park and the 2400 and 2500 blocks of Bowdens Ferry Road in Lamberts Point.
Another new ordinance gives all city inspectors the authority to issue summonses to violators.
Other new environmental regulations close loopholes that allowed defendants to avoid charges and conviction on technicalities and provide for the tracking of solid waste to assure it doesn't get dumped illegally elsewhere.
Other penalties for environmental offenders include remediation, restoration, cost recovery and community service.
Last year, the city's task force cleaned 81 dump sites.
The team has also received national recognition in the form of a partnership award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Region III for extraordinary contributions to chemical emergency preparedness and prevention. And, locally, the Norfolk Environmental Commission cited the force for its response and investigation of environmental crimes.
The public is asked to report dumping and other forms of pollution by calling the task force's hotline at 441-2536.
KEYWORDS: ANTI-DUMPING CODE ILLEGAL DUMPING