LOS ANGELES (KNX) — The Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday approved a series of motions aimed at reducing illegal garbage dumping around the city, with a special focus on decreasing clean-up crew response times once a report has been made.
“The city of Los Angeles is facing a crisis when it comes to trash, bulky items, and illegal dumping. In every corner of the city, pieces of furniture, loose debris, and trash piles are prevalent,” Councilmember Kevin de León wrote in one of the five related motions introduced Tuesday as part of his “Clean Streets Now” campaign.
Four of the five motions were passed unanimously Tuesday. The fifth has not yet been reviewed by the council.
"The city consistently pours more resources every year into cleaning the public right of way, but progress has been slow and the city is not moving the needle on neighborhood cleanliness," de León wrote in one of the motions. "A better strategy is needed that integrates existing resources and adequately staffs the Bureau of Sanitation so that the city can more proactively address illegal dumping and trash."
The councilmember, who is also running for mayor, called on the city to respond to reports of illegal dumping within 48 hours of their receipt.
Two of the four motions passed Tuesday specifically concerned illegal dumping. The remaining two aimed at equipping and effectively deploying L.A. Bureau of Sanitation teams to manage homeless encampment cleanups and increasing frequency of street sweeping in some areas.
The first motion concerning illegal dumping requested a report from the chief legislative analyst, Bureau of Sanitation, and Office of Community Beautification as to resources required to combat illegal dumping. The report will include crew needs and funding to be allocated to address the issue from various sources, including council discretionary funds.
The second motion instructed the Bureau of Sanitation to update the council on the CleanState Street Indexing System and identify parts of the city where illegal dumping problems are most acute.
The fifth motion yet to be considered by the council was aimed at enforcing the city’s law against dumping and compelled the Bureau of Sanitation and City Attorney’s OFfice to report on resources required to establish an enforcement program.
The sanitation bureau has 19 surveillance cameras already installed across L.A. to catch illegal street dumping. De León’s enforcement motion may call for the installation of more.
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