Flint, MI — The Genesee County Land Bank Authority (GCLBA) is partnering with the Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center (MI-YVPC) on dumping prevention solutions for Flint neighborhoods.
The project will see GCLBA crews work alongside the land bank’s Clean & Green program volunteers to clear areas that are known hot spots for illegal dumping.
Crews will then install dumping prevention measures at those hot spots, and researchers from the University of Michigan, where MI-YVPC is based, will evaluate the measures’ effectiveness over the ensuing years.
Planned interventions include solar lighting, trail cameras, boulder barriers and signage, according to a GCLBA press release on Aug. 30, 2023.
The same release states that over 80% of the land banks’ 65 Clean & Green groups reported regularly removing illegal dumping from the vacant lots they volunteer to maintain this season.
“Used tires, construction debris, furniture and other household belongings are often trucked in and dumped on lots by contractors and others doing home improvement projects,” the release reads.
MI-YVPC researchers have been working with GCLBA staff to identify roughly 40 sites for intervention measures throughout Flint, though officials noted additional properties will be selected for two additional years.
According to GCLBA, its crews began installing dumping prevention measures as part of this project on Saturday, Aug. 19, starting with 15 vacant lots at three different locations.
Officials said they anticipate the project will help reduce illegal dumping in Flint, and they hope its success will support further prevention efforts beyond the project’s selected sites.
“We appreciate our partnerships with neighborhood groups and the Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center that make this project possible, and we hope that through this process, we can create a model for effective illegal dumping prevention that can be used in other areas throughout the city,” said Michael Freeman, Executive Director of the Genesee County Land Bank.
According to the land bank’s press release, its crews plan to clean and install dumping prevention measures most Saturdays throughout the remainder of the growing season, weather permitting.
Researchers from the University of Michigan will then evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions for preventing violence and dumping, while also assessing the general patterns of illegal dumping across the city.
Site planning, data collection, interventions and monitoring of illegal dumping sites will extend until 2025.
Many communities give their residents passes that allow them to dump rubbish for free at the local landfill.
This summer priced how much it would cost to dump a pickup truck load of junk. One Genesee County landfill said it would be a minimum of $200.00! This is too expensive for many folks in Flint.
Providing free dump passes would definitely help reduce illegal dumping and improve the quality of life in Flint.
Agreed.