St. John's considers crackdown on illegal dumpers

The City of St. John's is hoping Big Brother will help catchpeople responsible for illegal dumping.

According to one city councillor, the problem is getting worse.

Another saysit's time to take action.

"I don't know what's wrong with people," Coun. Tom Hann said.

Hann is frustrated by the latest pictures showing that illegal dumping around the city is as big a problem as ever, despite millions of dollars spent modernizing the Robin Hood Bay landfill.

Hann says he wants the city to get tough and invest in surveillance cameras to catch the offenders.

"They can be fined up to a maximum of $5,000," Hann said. "And I think that everyone we can catch should be fined to the maximum."

Hann's colleague, Coun. Wally Collins, says there are plenty of dumpers around.

Collins represents Ward 5, a mostly rural area of the city.

Last year, Collins and some friends cleaned up more than 15 illegal dump sites around Cochrane Pond alone.

"These sites, you can clean them up and a month later they're just back the same way they are again," Collins said. "So it shouldn't be any problem to catch them."

City staffers are looking into Hann's proposal.