HIALEAH, Fla. — Hialeah native Nelson Garcia is sick and tired of seeing his community trashed.
“It’s become the new norm,” he said. “People just come and they dump and they go. It’s disgusting, it’s unacceptable.”
He was so upset that he took to Instagram to make some noise, and his video caught Local 10’s attention.
“This is my community,” he said. “I want everybody to see what’s happening in my backyard, and we have to let those people know that are doing this, that this is unacceptable.”
The area around Northwest 107th Avenue and West 108th Street, right on the border of Hialeah and Hialeah Gardens, is an industrial part of the city with mostly warehouses and dense trees, which make it dark and secluded at night, providing an ideal dumping ground.
“Everybody knows about this area,” said Garcia. “They just come, they dump, at who knows, 2, 3, 4 in the morning, when there’s nobody here, and it’s a free-for-all.”
And it’s not just one area, but all along 107th Avenue from Northwest 154th Street to West 114th Terrace.
Garcia took Local 10 News’ Louis Aguirre on a trash finding safari so we could see firsthand all the piles of junk that have accumulated on the side of the road.
“Everybody dumps and they go about their business, and nobody ever finds out,” said Garcia. “There’s no accountability and there’s no real consequences.”
The irony is right smack in the middle of all this mess is a sign that clearly reads: “Warning: No Dumping, violators will be prosecuted.”
Garcia said the city is not enforcing the warning, but Hialeah city officials said they’re aware of the problem and are trying to address it by “increasing patrol in the area” and “identifying peak times for dumping.”
As for Hialeah police, they released a statement to Local 10 News that read, in part:
“These areas, often dark and with minimal traffic, especially at night, are unfortunately being exploited. We are working closely with the Miami-Dade Sheriff Office Environmental Crimes Unit, which have made several arrests related to this problem.”
Both statements can be read in full at the bottom of this story.
Local 10 also showed video of the Hialeah dumping areas to Sgt. Christopher Garcia from Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office Environmental Crimes Unit.
“Very, very familiar with this area,” he said. “We have arrested easily, I would say in the zone of over 100 people over the last five years, easily.”
So if arrests are being made, why does the problem persist?
“We can’t catch them all,” said Garcia. “We’re out there, but I tell folks we can’t be there 24/7. (The city of Hialeah has) asked us, ‘What can we do?’ And we said, listen, the biggest thing is, you got to get it cleaned. You got to get all this area cleaned.”
Garcia said it’s not enough to arrest the litter bugs caught in the act. If the trash isn’t picked up, it continues to send the wrong message.
“You’ve got to play catch-up, you have to get this clean,” he said. “This trash gets trash. If you leave it there, people are going to think it’s okay.”
Since the bulk of the trash is on public property, the cleanup falls on the city of Hialeah, and it will cost thousands.
For Garcia, he just hopes all this attention will move the needle to finally get the mess cleaned up.
“Us from Hialeah, we know better,” he said. “We’re better than this. Hialeah is a beautiful city. We have to preserve it. We have to keep it clean, and we have to enforce rules.”
Environmental complaints can be reported to the Division of Environmental Resources Management complaint desk at 305-372-6955 24 hours a day, 7 days a week or by emailing environmentalcomplaints@miamidade.gov. You may also report environment complaints online.
City of Hialeah statement:
“Hialeah Mayor Jacqueline García-Roves is aware of what is happening in this area and has intensified her efforts to combat the illegal dumping of garbage in public spaces.
“Cleanup operations have been carried out repeatedly, and police patrols have been increased in the most affected areas in order to prevent this practice from continuing.
“In coordination with Miami-Dade County, the City is maintaining a joint action plan to address this issue more effectively. The Mayor highlighted the work of the Hialeah Police Department in preventing these behaviors and reaffirmed her commitment to keeping the city cleaner and safer for everyone.”
Hialeah Police Department statement:
“The City of Hialeah is aware and addressing the issue of illegal dumping, particularly in secluded areas near West 44th Ave/NW 107 Ave.
“These areas, often dark and with minimal traffic, especially at night, are unfortunately being exploited. We are working closely with the Miami-Dade Sheriff Office Environmental Crimes Unit, which have made several arrests related to this problem.
“We understand that during the late night hours, while officers are responding to calls for service, people are taking advantage of this time to dump illegally. To combat this, we’ve increased patrol in these areas and are identifying peak times for dumping incidents to further intensify our efforts.
“We are committed to keeping our city clean and safe, and we will continue to take action against those who violate our environmental laws.”
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