BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The City of Bakersfield continued its trash collection events over the weekend, which resulted in thousands of pounds of waste being picked up.
Even though it is unknown what impact the events are having on illegal dumping within city limits, one thing is for sure: the results are piling up.
"These started in January 2020," said Joe Conroy, the Public Information Officer for the City of Bakersfield. "At the time, I think we were doing either one a week or we were doing one every two weeks or something to start. We've tailored that back to now one every month."
"Most months average between 18,000 and about 30,000 pounds of trash and recycling combined," he continued. "We try to make convenient as possible. We rotate them through the city."
"Recently I've been coming a lot," said one citizen. "Two months ago, we brought a couple of loads in. It just seems a lot easier. Well, it is a lot closer."
"I never have a lot of stuff but it's an opportunity to get rid of stuff. Not just for me, but for my mother-in-law and my mother," said a different participant in the event. "I'm the trash man. Everyone else got the nice-looking vehicles and I'm the only one with a truck."
"We're pretty flexible," said Conroy. "We want to prevent a lot of illegal dumping or just give people a chance to get rid of stuff they normally wouldn't be able to get rid of."
"We obviously have the Bakersfield Mobile app too, where you can report illegal dumping if somebody sees that," said Conroy.
The City of Bakersfield app that Conroy mentioned gives anyone the power to report illegal dumping on their phone.
To report illegal dumping, go to the home page and click on "Requests" at the bottom of the screen. Choose "Create A Request" and either log in to the app or create an anonymous report. The app will take you to the "Service Request" page.
When selecting the type of report, there are options such as abandoned vehicle, animal control, encampment, graffiti, illegal dumping, and much more. Select one of those options and it will then enter a map with the option to select the location. After this, users will have the option to give more details, add a picture, and choose privacy settings before submitting the report.
