Oakland crews use heavy equipment to handle worsening illegal dumping problem

By John Ramos

For decades, the city of Oakland has been plagued by illegal dumping, and on Monday, a crew was in East Oakland removing giant piles of trash. But even as it was cleaned up, it stood as a symbol of both the hope and despair of the problem the city faces.

Hawley Street at 75th Avenue used to be a thriving light industrial site.

“My tenants and I used to have lots of business,” said property owner Greg Barron. “There was a bunch of business on 77th. Now most of these properties are sitting vacant. I had a 25-year tenant that left because of this stuff.”

That stuff was trash and debris piled so high it was hard to see an abandoned car parked in the middle of it. So, when the city crew arrived to clean things up, they brought in the heavy equipment. 

Mako Verge operated the giant claw on the boom-mounted dump truck.

“Thank God for the city getting this truck,” he said, as he hefted couches, construction material, and heavy debris into the trailer. “It’s a big help, rather than doing it with your hands and your back and a shovel and a rake.”

Oakland had to purchase more powerful equipment as the problem of illegal dumping has grown in recent years. Many blame homeless persons for the problem, while others point to professional haulers who use the streets as a place to dump refuse to avoid disposal fees. Whatever the source, no one on Hawley Street seemed to think the cleaned-up area would stay clean for long. 

Verge said he tries not to let that get him down.

“If I let it get to me, then it’ll just mess up my whole day. So, it’s my job. I have to take pride in my job,” Verge said. “Anytime you pick up debris, you have to feel like you’re making a difference. Because it’s a lot. And it’s everywhere.

“Yeah, it’s discouraging to our crews and all around Oakland,” said city Public Works spokesperson Shamie Sahandy. “You know, everyone knows illegal dumping is a serious problem, but we’re trying to come at it from every angle.”

Oakland is taking a more aggressive approach, paying overtime to staff cleanup crews seven days a week, instead of only five. And Sahandy said they will use cameras and “geo-location technologies” to find dump sites and identify violators and will push the district attorney for harsher penalties. 

The city says it will take time to make an impact, but Barron says he can’t afford to wait, especially since he said the city is taxing him for owning vacant properties.

“I’ve tried to sell my properties twice in the last five years. Nobody wants to come down here,” Barron said. “As long as it’s like this, they’re going to stay vacant. And then the city will send me another vacancy tax, which is probably bigger than my property tax, for a problem that they should be taking care of!”

Sahandy said the city will more closely monitor businesses to make sure they are enrolled in commercial garbage service and will seek to place liens on property taxes to force violators to pay for cleanup operations. While the city is making an effort and appealing for patience, residents seem to have tossed out that patience a long time ago.