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Ministry wants public to help prevent illegal dumping

Staff from the Compliance and Enforcement and the Wildfire Management Branch removed 1,432 kilograms of garbage and 454 kilograms of metal that was dumped in the forest along Airport Way south of Revelstoke over the years.
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Columbia Unit Crew firefighters and Columbia Field Unit compliance and enforcement staff cleaned up a huge pile of illegally-dumped garbage from the forest in Revelstoke.

Almost two tonnes of garbage was collected from illegal dumping sites by Ministry of Forests workers during a recent clean-up operations, the ministry announced Monday.

Staff from the Compliance and Enforcement and the Wildfire Management Branch removed 1,432 kilograms of garbage and 454 kilograms of metal that was dumped in the forest along Airport Way south of Revelstoke over the years.

Staff took time away from its regular duties to perform the clean-up. The garbage included used tires, fridges and old furniture.

"Now that the forest is clean and green again, staff hope the public will help keep it that way for everyone's enjoyment," the ministry stated.

According to the ministry, there are 55,000 kilometres of forest service roads in the province, making it difficult to patrol and catch people who dump illegally. The province is requesting people report any offenders to compliance and enforcement staff.

To report an offender, contact the Columbia Forest District at 250-837-7611 or call the Report All Poachers and Polluters (RAPP) line at 1-877-952-7277.

Someone caught illegally dumping can be fined up to $2,000 and receive as many as six months in jail, as well as paying for the cost of the clean-up.