Junction Triangle

Illegal dumping on tracks near Wallace Ave.: November 1, 2008

The Toronto Star's "Fixer" has another article about our neighbourhood. Unfortunately, articles from The Fixer don't usually shine a positive light on things. This article discusses the illegal dumping that frequently occurs along the train tracks around Wallace Ave., between Campbell and Lansdowne Avenues.

Illegal dump makes area an eyesore
By Jack Lackey, Toronto Star, 2010-02-17

Some selected quotes:

There are a lot of ways to disrespect a community, but strewing the landscape with junk that could be properly disposed of has to rank near the top.
We went there Tuesday and found an appalling amount of garbage likely dumped in the dead of the night. There was a couch, a mattress, old appliances and several bags of trash.
On a utility pole near the tracks was a sign warning that illegal dumpers can be fined up to $5,000, which sounds formidable but is obviously considered an empty threat.
STATUS: Markings on track equipment identified CN Rail, so we called its media rep, Frank Binder. He said CN did a major cleanup there a year ago, but has since sold the track to GO Transit. GO's Vanessa Thomas took down the details and promised to update us.
A swift cleanup will take place, Thomas said, "if it is determined that this garbage is located on GO Transit property."

Read the complete article online at The Star's website.

What are your thoughts on dumping around our neighbourhood? What can we do to keep things cleaned up and prevent people from dumping their junk illegally? Perhaps as soon as any illegal dumping is noticed, the City and property owners should be notified ASAP to make sure the area gets cleaned up. And of course, if you see someone dumping illegally, make sure they are reported.

The silliest part about dumping couches, mattresses, and other oversized items is that it's actually much more work to drag your junk to an illegal dumping site. The City picks it up for free anyway, so why do people go out of their way to do this?

Dumping attracts more dumping. Let's keep things clean at all times.

UPDATE, Thursday Februrary 18:
Today's Fixer column reports that:

Our Tuesday story was about garbage illegally dumped near a train level crossing on Wallace Ave., near Bloor St. and Lansdowne Ave. Vanessa Thomas, who deals with media for GO Transit, which owns the rail line, emailed to say GO has confirmed that the mess is on its property, and that it should be cleaned up by Thursday.