Lake Havasu Field Office
| Contacts: | Mike Brown | , 928-505-1285 |
Trash Dumping Spoils Our Desert
Lake Havasu City, Ariz. – Frequent dumping of household hazardous materials in the desert surrounding Lake Havasu is costing taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars and creating ugly, dangerous situations.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Lake Havasu Field Office hazardous materials specialists and law enforcement rangers recently found and cleaned up a dump site of used motor oil, batteries, and vehicle parts from the desert outside of Lake Havasu City.
Cathy White, the BLM Lake Havasu Field Office Hazardous Materials Coordinator, commented “This dumping of hazardous materials in the desert is getting worse and has got to stop! We’ve had a dozen incidents in the past year. Whenever there is spilled motor oil or leaking batteries, we have to call in the hazardous materials removal contractor … at $2,500 minimum – whether it’s one quart or ten gallons of spilled material. Every dollar we spend cleaning up these dumpsites is a dollar that doesn’t get spent on something which benefits everyone.”
“The simple solution is to recycle. It’s hard to imagine why people can’t drive around the corner to a drop off facility in Lake Havasu but they can drive miles out to a pristine spot in the desert and dump motor oil, batteries, parts, etc.” White added that there are several businesses in Lake Havasu who accept waste oil, antifreeze, batteries, paint, and much more. The Lake Havasu City Fire Department (928 453-3313) has a list of all businesses and drop off sites where people can dispose of these common waste items.
Dumping on public lands is illegal. In addition to federal laws, Mohave County enforces and prosecutes illegal dumping through the Mohave County Environmental Rural Area Clean-up Enforcement (ERACE) program.
People are asked to report any dumping activity they see by calling ERACE at (928) 715-0480 or call the BLM Lake Havasu Field Office Law Enforcement at (928) 505-1200.
The BLM manages more land - 253 million acres - than any other Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The Bureau, with a budget of about $1 billion, also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Lake Havasu Field Office 2610 Sweetwater Avenue Lake Havasu City, AZ 86406