Indy DPW shuts down recycling site as illegal dumping continues to be a problem

INDIANAPOLIS — Illegal dumping has gotten so bad in Indy that it has caused officials to shut down a popular recycling site on the far east side.

The City of Indianapolis initially announced its new campaign to stop illegal dumping back in December .

“It’s still getting worse and nobody is doing anything about it. Everybody just kind of bats their eye and looks the other way,” said Allen Johnson, who lives on the east side.

FOX59/CBS4 crews were all around town Friday, finding everything from illegally dumped mattresses and couches to car seats.

Johnson was busy cleaning up one of the city’s recycling sites off East Washington Street.

“There are businesses over there that are trying to attract customers and who wants to eat around trash?” said Johnson.

It’s a problem not only residents are frustrated with, but the city is too.

Indy’s Department of Public Works said it deals with about 500-600 cases of illegal dumping a month.

“This is something that we are constantly asking for the community’s help in ID’ing where these things are and who is doing it. Unfortunately, we know that it’s only a handful of bad actors and neighbors so we’re running into problems with that across the city,” said Corey Ohlenkamp with DPW.

On Friday, the city announced the popular recycling drop-off site behind the Kroger at 11101 Pendleton Pike had closed. Ohlenkamp said it’s because too many people were taking advantage of this site and illegally dumping there.

“It’s just unfortunate, especially with this site, because when we closed the high school we said everyone start using this Kroger and now we’re losing the Kroger,’ said Ohlenkamp. “And that’s kind of what we’ve noticed is when we’ve shut down one site, the bad actors for those just have transferred to other sites. It’s an unfortunate process. They know that they’re able to try to take advantage of the system. And we’re trying to make sure that we come up with creative solutions to stop them from doing that.”

DPW said city staff will continue ongoing conversations to further expand recycling options, including a forthcoming structured drop-off recycling collaboration, for community members in Marion County, especially in the downtown, west side, and east side areas.

“We need more initiative from the community members. Stepping up and taking the leader role. Doing what’s right,” said Johnson.

Additional local recycling information, including information on the city’s goals to make solid waste options more accessible and convenient for all Marion County residents and how to subscribe for biweekly curbside recycling pickup, can be found online here .

All materials must be loose, clean and dry and all cardboard boxes must be flattened before placing in a recycling bin. Bagged recyclables cannot be processed as plastic bags get caught in machines and put employees at risk of potential hazards during the sorting process.

The following materials are accepted at the community drop-off recycling sites free of charge:

• All colors of glass
• #1 and #2 plastic bottles and jugs (no Styrofoam, plastic bags, or plastic film)
• Aluminum, tin, and steel beverage and food cans
• Newspapers, broken-down cardboard boxes, paper, and magazines
• A great resource for improving personal recycling habits is Recycling Simplified
• Proper, legal disposal options exist for all other forms of waste as well

Furniture and bulky items should be brought to the Citizens’ Transfer Station or set out on your heavy trash pickup day .

Extra household trash bags should also be brought to the Citizens’ Transfer Station. Household hazardous waste and most electronics can be recycled at one of the City’s ToxDrop locations.

Electronics can also be recycled at RecycleForce’s new headquarters at 816 N. Sherman Drive during their regular weekday hours.

Indianapolis community members and private businesses are reminded that illegal dumping, or leaving trash, furniture, hazardous waste, debris, or any other non-recyclable material at these sites, is prohibited and carries fines up to $2,500.

Illegal dumping threatens human health and the environment, costs public resources to clean up, and threatens the future viability of a community recycling drop-off location. Leaving recyclable materials that cannot fit into the box on the pavement is also considered illegal dumping.

Property owners interested in hosting a new recycling drop-off location should contact the Indy DPW recycling team at sustainindy@indy.gov.

Site proposals for a new recycling location should have space approximately 80 feet long by 40 feet wide to accommodate the roll-off boxes, plus plenty of extra clearance for vehicle access.

A map and address information of other drop-off recycling locations can be found online here .

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 59.