Oh Dear, How Sad, Never Mind ...

Dumped rubbish, Mt Messenger

"An 85-year-old man fell nearly 50m to his death down a cliff in Omanawa in the Western Bay of Plenty last night.

Inspector Turepu Keenan said it was believed the man was throwing rubbish from his ute at the top of the cliff at the time of the accident.

Police have yet to notify the man's relatives about his death." NZH

And in Taranaki

"Conservation workers are going to extreme lengths to identify phantom dumpers who leave household rubbish at local scenic reserves.

DOC workers Nicholas Lemm and Sam Darling were sifting through rubbish yesterday for any sign of an offender.

Every now and then, they struck gold amongst the maggot-infested rubbish � finding a letter, bill or receipt with a name and address.

People ignorant enough to leave such a vital clue can expect a visit from DOC � and possible prosecution.

One such name came to light while a Taranaki Daily News reporter and photographer watched the sorting operation yesterday.

The name was on a job application signed by a New Plymouth woman.

The Taranaki Daily News went door-knocking and left messages, but the woman did not contact us for comment.

DOC's action comes after recent dumping at the Ratapihipihi Scenic Reserve, off Cowling Rd, in Hurdon, and Everett Reserve, near Inglewood.

The bottles, boxes, junk mail and household rubbish at both reserves was enough to fill a medium-sized trailer.

Ian Drewery, who has used the Ratapihipihi Reserve for 30 years, was disgusted by the desecration of his favourite running spot.

"It's just a place I really love and to see all that junk out really saddens me," he said.

"It makes me wonder what the people who do that sort of thing, what they think about the environment.

"They're just lazy arseholes who don't operate any other way," he said.

DOC area manager Steve McGill said the latest dumping was nothing new.

"It's just a shame, because it certainly tarnishes our clean green image and spoils it for the public."

People can be fined up to $5000 for littering in a public place under the Litter Act 1979.

New Plymouth District Council parks manager Mark Bruhn says the problem is not isolated to reserves. People dump rubbish at all parks around the city.

The council has several acts and bylaws to punish people who are not respecting the parks.

Some offenders have been given community service or attended family conferences to address the problem."

(Daily News - probably short term link)

Whiteware

We have another rubbish problem now and then. Here a fridge, washing machine and oven have fallen from a truck carting them to a recycling plant in Auckland. Lucky this happened out on the open road and not in a built up area, they are heavy and it was a bit of a struggle for two of us to lift them onto my truck. The crosses mark the spot where a family were wiped out some years ago. The crosses and roadside shrines pop into the news now and then, some politicians would like to get rid of them. We have all types along the road, often just a simple cross, but also stuffed toys, plastic windmills, and rather poignantly down the road is a lone red rose on a fence post. It marks the spot where after hitting a tree, a young woman died in the arms of a road worker who was repairing a bridge nearby. I started to take photo's of some of the rather pathetic little shrines, but then decided I was being morbid and deleted them.
Rest Area 300m

SEATTLE — Roadside litter comes in all shapes and sizes — from dirty diapers to syringes — but there's one category that out-grosses the rest: trucker bombs.
Most drivers whiz along the nation's highways largely oblivious to their roadside surroundings. But next time you are out there, take a closer look.
"As soon as you look for it you’ll see it," says Megan Warfield, litter programs coordinator at Washington state's Department of Ecology. "You just see them glistening in the sun. It’s just gross."
They are trucker bombs, plastic jugs full of urine tossed by truckers, and even non-truckers, who refuse to make a proper potty stop to relieve themselves.
Disposing of trucker bombs, aka torpedoes or pee bottles, is a thankless task that in many cases falls to highway cleanup crews.
When it comes to human waste, the dangerous category covers trucker bombs and dirty diapers. Together the accounted for 8,000 pounds of trash collected from state roads last year.

In April, Colorado increased its "human waste" fine from $40 to $500. Transportation employees convinced lawmakers of the need for the drastic increase with their tales of finding urine jugs as they mowed roadway ditches. "We hit them, they explode. The operator ends up wearing this stuff," Randy Dobyns told state senators.

Dobyns estimated he picks up at least 50 containers a week, sometimes milk jugs, water bottles or even bags filled with urine. "The folks who dispose of this stuff are very creative in their use of containers," he said.

Well this is one American cultural practice that we don't need!
So when you see a truck stopped, and the driver "surveying" the off side rear wheel, just remember he is doing his thing for a clean and green New Zealand.........

You Are What You Toss

On Saturdays I generally do a run up the highway emptying the rubbish bins in the rest areas, which I cart to the landfill. It is generally a cruisy job, but it has it's moments. A hot day and old fish bait stewing in black plastic bags, rats, and disposable nappies do not make for a happy road worker. But the locals who use the bins as their dumping place really get up your nose. They put their household rubbish in the bins leaving no room for the passing public. Rubbish ends up everywhere. So I have become a forensic detective.
If you are a suspected CIA mole,or a mobster, the first thing the FBI will do is grab your rubbish bin. A careful sort can give you all sorts of information.
Today , not only did I find enough identification to bust a "serial dumper" ($500 fine) but I know how much they have in the bank, what they bought last shopping trip, where they parked, that the missus has a vaginal infection, and the car registration is due.
Rest Area 300m

An Untidy Kiwi
Rest Area 300m

Come in 77, your time is up.

Somewhere near us there is an unofficial demolition derby being run. There used to be one near where I lived on the other Coast. One Sunday a month people would turn up in old heaps that had an afternoon of life left in them, and they would race around a paddock, winner or sole survivor would get a box of beers and much glory.
We would dearly love to have a little "chat" with the driver of No 77. He abandons his wrecks on our road. I have to cart them to the tip.