One woman’s push has resulted in the cleanup of illegal dumping at a gravel pit near Williams Lake.
A few weeks ago Darlene Head put out a call asking for help clearing up the Colpit Road Gravel Pit located off the Dog Creek Road.
She lives nearby and during the last four years watched the site become littered with burnt out cars, a freezer, a boat and tons of garbage, some of it left by people using the area for target shooting practice.
Last Saturday, May 14, Barry Mueller of Mueller Electric, Jonathan Soroka of Bee Jay Towing (2015) Ltd. and Central Cariboo Disposal came to her aid, along with a small group of residents from Williams Lake, her neighborhood and nearby Springhouse.
“Barry’s tractor was a major help,” Darlene said Thursday. “Without it we wouldn’t have been able to do what we did. He even put the boat in the dumpster.”
Bee Jays hauled the filled dumpster away to the transfer station and the Cariboo Regional District did not charge the group tipping fees.
“I still don’t know who sorted all the garbage, I have yet to thank them,” Darlene said.
Darlene is now hoping large boulders can be placed at the entrance to stop further dumping of large items at the site and has put out feelers for someone to haul them in there for her.
In the meantime she plans to police the area herself to prevent it from getting littered so extensively again.
As for the cleanup, that’s something one person could not have done on their own, she added.