What we need are surveillance cameras. People dump directly under those signs. I have photos of just that in my "worst of dumping" archives.

I believe we need signage as well but none of the signs, surveillance cameras or others will prevent the dumping. I am aware of sites with surveillance cameras that continue to be plagued with dumping, we just have video of it. Our vigilance reporting it for clean up will still be required. What may help is to have local affordable or free places to dump things. To get rid of things I couldn't put in trash pick up I had to drive more than 40 miles to the dump and pay a VERY heavy fee. This is why illegal dumping will continue.

I agree

In my opinion, illegal dumping isn't only because of large go-to-the-dump fees. You're right about having (more) local & affordable pick up, BUT we are seeing garbage bags of trash discarded in public, not just furniture, electronics, etc.

If "home" pickup (including at multi-unit rentals) was more available, perhaps there'd be less dumping
on the streets. But bulky "at home" pick up is dependent on LANDLORDS CALLING FOR IT.

And it seems that too many people just don't care. Littering is widespread, too. Have seen people just throw trash out of their parked cars rather than take it home and dispose of it. Where are the TV and school campaigns that used to teach about NOT littering?

Landlords can call for bulky waste pickups apartment buildings of 4 units or fewer or for single family homes, but the current process isn't simple and they don't get multiple free pickups per year. Some apartment managers dump items left by tenants on the street after evictions.

I think that if we had free bulky waste pickups available to folks in multi-unit apartment buildings, there would be less dumping of mattresses and sofas and the like. The city is picking it up anyway. Why not make it a systematic process? It could be a certain day of the week, on a street by street basis near the end of the month. That's the way it's done in some cities. In Paris, you request your bulky waste pickup online, you are told when to set your items out and they are picked up.

In the past we have had some dump amnesty days when there were no fees, but those happen once in a blue moon.

Many people don't have trucks or the money or hire a "job truck" from the PWA so they use a private hauler and don't ask for a receipt from the dump. The private hauler then dumps the stuff on our streets when no one is looking. Rebecca Kaplan has proposed that all private haulers be licensed. Perhaps that would help.

Some of the stuff we see dumped are from landlords remodeling after a move out or eviction. They dump carpet and other construction debris like old flooring and sheetrock on our streets. Often neighbors know who did it but don't report it or you see a report like, "it came from the remodel on the corner." If that's the case, call PWA and tell them the address. Include any photos you may have and license numbers of vehicles involved. The DA needs to verify your info, so it can't be an anonymous seeclickfix report if you want them caught.

A seeclickfixer witnessed a rented truck dumping construction debris on the street. He got the truck's details and went to the place where the truck was rented. He found out who had rented it and got the manager of the rental place to ban her. I hope PWA went after her. She is apparently someone who lives here in Oakland and is buying property to remodel and flip. She seems to think it's okay to dump on the streets to avoid paying dump fees or renting a dumpster.

I'd like to see billboards or something letting graffiti vandals know that the city of Oakland spends over million dollars a year cleaning off their scribbles. That doesn't include what owners of private property pay to remove it from their budilings. That's money that could be spent on schools, parks, street repair, etc. Victimless crime? No, it is not.

It's estimated that the U.S. spends 12 to 25 billion dollars a year on graffiti removal.

Here's an interesting study on littering behavior in the U.S.

http://www.kab.org/site/DocServer/KAB_Report_Final_2.pdf?docID=4581

Quite fascinating study, Eileen...have just managed to read a few pages, but have saved to my own email for further study. I think each of our City Council Reps. should get a copy of this study. Why try to "re-invent the wheel"? The problem has a solution...several, in fact.

I have been obsessively reading whatever I can find on dumping and littering behavior and how to create incentives and inducements to get people to do the right thing.

Keep Oakland Beautiful had some PSAs on illegal dumping made. How to get them out there, though? I asked the manager of the New Parkway if he would play "Couch" before movies. Not sure if they did. The Keep Oakland Beautiful folks were supposed to follow up with him.

Couch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPdKyYlfXD8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U63fiGug7kQ

Here's what they do in Paris when it comes to bulky waste:

http://www.theparisblog.com/trashy-lady/

Some littering statistics:

http://www.statisticbrain.com/littering-statistics/

Indeed, WHERE are the Public Service Announcements?
Have moved all these links to my own email for further study. Thanks!