City looks for solutions to stop littering, illegal dumping

JACKSON, Tenn. – Keep Jackson Beautiful and the Jackson Police Department have been working on solutions to stop littering and illegal dumping in the city.

One option is the use of cameras to help catch those who are wrongly disposing of trash.

We spoke to Danielle Wade, the Keep Jackson Beautiful coordinator, who told us how the cameras would be of helpful use.

“We use those cameras to: One, get the plates. Trace that. Then our officer would investigate and determine if it was in fact Julie driving the vehicle at the time of the incident. And then we would go process it from there,” Wade said.

There were some issues at first when the cameras were being tested out such as the recognition of a license plate.

The camera could only catch so much, but now, the new cameras are specifically for plate recognition.

Wade also stated that the cameras are not doing the work alone, but volunteers in the community help as well.

“We basically have a list of areas throughout the city, each district, and we have an independent panel of volunteers and sometimes board members who go out and judge these areas on a scale based on how littered they are,” Wade said.

The cameras have been up and running since mid-December in certain areas of the city such as Ridgecrest Road.

Councilman Richard Donnell stated that the litter has gotten out of hand, especially in his district.

“It’s very noticeable in my district because District 4, in my estimation, has become a dumping ground. People come in from all over town dumping their things in District 4,” Donnell said.

Judge Blake Anderson stated that there are 200 people per month picking up trash, and that’s 200 people that would have to be in jail otherwise.

“People are now coming up to them saying things are looking better. We appreciate the job you’re doing,” Anderson said.

You still have an opportunity to volunteer to clean all month long during No Trash November.

Find more local news here.