Home

Project Overview

Case Studies

Findings

Links

Who Are We?

Linn County, Oregon

by Alyssa Buhl

Geography

            Linn County is 2, 292 square miles.   Private land ownership accounts for the majority of the land in Linn County.    

            The vegetation is very diverse with agricultural farm land dominating the western side, and Western Hemlock, Douglas Fir, and Grand Fir mixed forests dominating the central and eastern parts of the county.   The less dominate vegetation types include Oregon Oak, Douglas Fir, and Ponderosa Pine mixed forests dispersed throughout the central western region of Linn County, outside of Lebanon. 1  

            The largest city in Linn County is Albany (population 42,280). The other major incorporated cities include Lebanon (population 13,156), Sweet Home (population 8,145), Harrisburg (population 2,884), Mill City (population 1,561), Brownsville (population 1,449), Lyons (population 1,050), and Tangent (population Pop. 943).   In general, Linn County has 47.14 square miles of land zoned for urban use. This is equal to about 2% of the land in Linn County.   Over 62% of the total population lives in the urban areas of western Linn County.

Demographics

            Overall, the Linn County population has a lower income than the national average.   The educational attainment is also below average.   Manufacturing is the dominant industry with education, health, and social services as the second dominant industry.  

Waste Management

            Five private waste management companies have one or more franchised areas of Linn County.   Almost all areas have garbage service.   Albany-Lebanon Sanitation estimates that below 5% of Linn County residents do not have curb side garbage service available.   All of Linn County's garbage is ultimately placed in Coffin Butte Landfill, located in Benton County. Two transfer stations within Linn County accept residential garbage.   The Lebanon Transfer Station and Sweet Home Sanitation Transfer stations act as collection stations for residential waste hauling companies and accept household items for a fee.   The majority of people in Linn County are within 30 miles of a transfer station, but, due to the size of the county, the customers in the eastern parts of the county are significantly further away.   The fees for home garbage service are regulated by a number of agencies.   Rate changes, proposed by franchisees, must be reviewed by the Linn County Solid Waste Advisory Committee who issues a recommendation to the final decision makers, the Linn County Board of Commissioners. The last rate increase for all of Linn County began January 1, 2005.

            Certain items, such as large appliances, tires, and furniture, require a special fee to cover recycling and special handling costs.   The fees for these items range from $14-30. Refrigerators and freezers are the most expensive items.   Charges for tire disposal are dependant on the tire size.   These fees range from $5 a rimless tire and $8 per rimmed tire to $23 per rimless truck tire and $25 per rimmed truck tire. The charge for extra bags is $5.   Hazardous materials are not collected at the curb by any of Linn County's garbage haulers.   Once a year, Albany-Lebanon Sanitation hosts a hazardous waste drop off day where residents can dispose of hazardous materials for free.   Otherwise, hazardous material is not accepted by any garbage company.

Illegal Dumping

Severity and History

            Illegal dumping has been a common problem on Linn County's public lands for decades.   The BLM is constantly finding illegal dumps in their lands. Denis Daraghy, a BLM district ranger, points out, "Dumping seems to be related to population size.   More people, more dumping occurrences."   Many items dumped are considered special wastes by garbage companies and require an extra fee.   Unfortunately, once an area gets dumped on it will quickly collect more garbage until the area is cleaned up.   As Nancy Speiler, program coordinator for SOLV, describes, "Historically, for dumping areas, if someone sees an area that appears to be used in that way and nobody is cleaning it up, it encourages more dumping.   But, if an area is cleaned up there is some active stewardship going on; the area is clean and less likely to become an area of future dumping."   This seems to be the case for the USFS too.  

            While illegal dump sites on BLM lands range in severity from a few bags of household goods to truckloads of building materials.   Certain sites have a lasting effect on the nearby environment.   Toxic dump sites have contaminated stream systems and ecosystems, particularly those with products leftover from methamphetamine production.   Overall, the BLM's illegal dumping problem remains a complicated issue that has not fluctuated much over time.

            The USFS has similar dumping issues.   The severity of dump sites have not increased or decrease significantly over time.   In general, the USFS does not experience as many large dump sites as the BLM.   They have more problems with people using the forest for recreation and leaving small litter behind, especially in the summer.   The biggest problem for the USFS is people that take up residency in the woods, than leave behind all their goods along with a camper or trailer.   Unfortunately, it is difficult to convict dumpers.   Regan Eivers, USFS law enforcement agent, states, when confronted, "A lot of people just say 'I paid someone to throw it away' or 'don't know how my stuff got there'."   Without the ability to successfully convict many suspected dumpers, repeat dumpers continue to add to the problem.

Programs and Deterrents

            Linn County does not have any formal programs specifically against illegal dumping, but it does enforce the Solid Waste Disposal and Nuisance Code.   This code includes illegal dumping.   The county works with the Linn County Planning and Building Dept. on complaints.

            While the BLM uses signs and road blocks to deter dumpers from certain areas, the most effective deterrent has been regular ranger patrols.   The BLM has 3 rangers that patrol the 4,000 scattered acres of land in the Salem District.   Additionally, they hire county deputies to patrol certain areas.   Dumpers are less likely to dump in an area that other people visit frequently, but, due to the size of the BLM districts, many areas don't get patrolled enough to effectively deter dumpers.   The BLM also hosts a general law enforcement hotline where people can call to report any illegal activity occurring in the woods.   The BLM works with SOLV, and local law enforcement agencies on this issue.

            SOLV is an agency that aids volunteer organizations throughout the state by offering grants and supplies to groups interested in cleaning up forested areas.   They contribute prevention signs, increase public awareness, and provide barriers to block cars from backing up into certain roads in an effort to slow illegal dumping.

            The USFS patrols their lands with 3 summer rangers and one year round ranger.   They use a few different deterrents to combat illegal dumping such as prevention signs with fine information, gates on closed roads, and tiger traps (deep holes with rocks lining the front side spanning closed road ways).   No increases or decreases in activity can be tied to any of these deterrents.   Regan Eivers notes that larger scale dumping occurs more frequently in the fall and winter than in the summertime due to the decreased amounts of people on public lands.   The USFS specifically works with the Linn County Sheriffs Office on illegal dumping prevention issues.

            Another program that has been linked to illegal dumping prevention in Linn County is the Fire Prevention Program.   According to Lupe Wilson, USFS recreation technician, all brochures and public education for the prevention of forest fires include information about illegal dumping and the importance of keeping the forests clean.   While both dispersed, small camping areas without amenities, and developed camping sites get dumped on, larger dump sites tend to be in dispersed areas, where less people frequent.   Currently, USFS rangers make a point to talk to people using recreation areas.   Rangers carry around garbage bags to give away and they note the license plate numbers and names of all the people they talk to in the National forests.   Wilson notes that, in the less populated areas, "People are going to go up there and we need to address the sanitation issues."   The USFS has installed new permanent garbage cans in some of the dispersed areas.   The response from people who use the forest has been positive, but the problem persists partly because some people just don't want to pay to have their garbage hauled.

Costs

            Illegal dump sites can be extremely expensive to remediate.   The most visible costs are labor, equipment, cleaning supplies and materials used to collect the garbage, and the costs of properly disposing the garbage.   The less visible costs include contamination of soil and waterway systems, the loss of aesthetic beauty, and the toxic endangerment to plants and wildlife.   While the costs are extremely timely and difficult to compile, the Linn County Roads Department has broken down the costs of cleaning up illegal dumpsites on their land during the 2004 calendar year.

Labor                     $38,812

Equipment                 9,084

Materials                    2,657

Dispose services        6,834

    Total                      $57,389

            The BLM and USFS have the same types of expenses as the Roads Dept., but the exact amount spent on illegal dumping is difficult to compile. The BLM and USFS have rangers that patrol public lands and look for signs of illegal activity including illegal dumping.   As stated previously, the BLM has 3 rangers and a variable number of paid county deputies patrolling their lands.   In addition to the cost of patrols, the BLM notes toxic dump sites as the most expensive to clean up.   They have to hire a hazardous material person to suit up and come out and clean hazardous site which is extremely expensive. The USFS has 1 ranger patrolling Linn County in the fall and winter, and 3 rangers in the summer.   The rangers are the only employees spending a large portion of their time dealing with illegal dumping issues.

            In general, the land owner is responsible for cleaning up the illegal dumping that occurs on their land.   The dump sites on the side of state owned roads are cleaned up by the Linn County Roads Department.   The BLM employees clean up most of the dumpsites on their land.   When necessary, they contract other people to clean up sites including hazardous material specialists to clean up toxic site.  

            The USFS has a husband and wife volunteer group, Cathy and George Beamer, who go out every week to clean up dump sites and litter on National forest land.   They have been volunteering for 1 and a half years and cover both the heavily dispersed camp sites and the developed camp sites.   The materials they find range from small personal litter to large appliances.   USFS employees pick up all large items that the couple cannot manage.        

Dumped Items

            The items most often dumped include household garbage, appliances, tires, televisions, refrigerators, paint cans, construction materials, auto parts, and animal carcasses.  

            The BLM has a big problem with people making methamphetamines in the forest.   This process is extremely toxic.   Trish Hogervorst, BLM Salem district manager, noted an incidence where a BLM deputy saw some dead fish floating in a stream.   He walked upstream and discovered an old methamphetamine lab that was so toxic it had killed all living organisms in the general vicinity.   Another problem item is tires.

              One of the biggest problems on USFS land is that people take up residency in the forest, bring trailers out, and eventually abandon everything they own in the woods.   Rangers find one to two abandoned trailers a year.   The USFS has also found cars full of bullet holes.   This becomes a major problem when the abandoned cars begin to leak gas and oil on the ground.   The problem item for all public lands is tires.   Tires, as stated earlier, are expensive to dump and therefore have become a common item in illegal dumps.

Consequences    

            The consequences for illegal dumpers range from fines to jail time.   It is extremely hard to convict an illegal dumper without a confession.   All BLM and USFS ranger have law enforcement capabilities.   They investigate dumps for signs of who did the dumping and work with local law enforcement agents to try to get a conviction.   A criminal charge can amount to 6 months in jail and a $5,000 fine.   A civil conviction includes a fine of up to $500.   In all cases the convicted dumper is responsible for cleaning up the dump site.   Suspected dumpers can also be cited for property abandonment if there is evidence of their goods in the dump site.   Overall, not many people get convicted and the ones that do usually pay their fine and clean up their mess without a problem.

Allan, Stuart, Aileen Buckley, William G. Loy, and Jim Meacham.   Atlas of Oregon . Eugene: University of Oregon Press, 2001.

State of Oregon.   Oregon Blue Book . 9 Jan.   2005 <http:// bluebook.state.or.us>.

  United States.   Census Bureau.   Census 2000 . 2000. 11 Jan. 2005 < http://www.census.gov .>.

Albany-Lebanon Sanitation Company receptionist.   Personal interview.   1 Feb. 2005.

McEvoy, John.   "Re: Solid Waste Management."   E-mail to the author.   24 Jan.   2005.

Albnay-Lebanon Sanitation Company. 31 Jan. 2005. < http://www.sanitation.com>.

Daraghy, Denis.   Personal interview.   25 Jan. 2005.

Speiler, Nancy.   Personal interview.   21 Jan.   2005.

Hogervorst, Trish.   Personal   interview.   21 Jan.   2005.

Eivers, Regan.   Personal interview. 21 Jan.   2005.

Wilson, Lupe. Personal interview.   1 Feb.   2005.

Lane, Darrin. Personal interview.   24 Jan.   2005.