Milwaukee County parks are a magnet for dumping. Here's what to know about the problem

Garbage bags. Medical waste. Mattresses. Broken concrete. Tires.

That's some of the illegal dumping found routinely by the County's Parks Department across the Milwaukee area.

"It's not just the sheer volume, but this is what our staff have to deal with on a pretty regular basis for cleanup at various sites," the department's director of operations and skilled trades, Peter Bratt, told county supervisors this week. "Dumping happens in every season. All shapes and sizes."

Now, in an effort to curb the dumping, the Milwaukee County Board is trying to find ways to boost surveillance of and penalties for those dumping trash.

"That's unacceptable," Supervisor Steve Taylor said of the photos of illegal dumping that were shared with the county's parks and culture committee. "You gotta make people pay when people do it — like make an example out of them. Make it hurt."

"It's overdue," he said. "County residents own this land. So, they're doing it to their neighbors, their friends."

While the presentation provided to the committee was informational, Bratt told supervisors he could create an actionable request down the line, including a request for higher fines.

"We want to go the stick approach. The carrot's not working," Supervisor Sheldon A. Wasserman said.

What Milwaukee County parks are hardest hit by illegal dumping?

Some of the hardest hit areas include Little Menomonee River Parkway, Lincoln Creek Parkway, McGovern Park, and Washington Park, with 60 instances of large-scale illegal dumping across the county in the last few years.

What steps have been used to mitigate illegal dumping?

Some of the ways the parks department has tried to mitigate the issue involved eliminating vehicle access to the hardest hit parks, installing barriers to reduce easy access to dumping and partnerships with the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office and local friends and community groups.

The County Board approved American Rescue Plan Act dollars to help fund a trail conversion to replace the road access on Little Menomonee River Parkway between West Appleton Avenue and West Mill Road with a hike and bike trail in the county's northwest side.

The Urban Ecology Center has also installed a surveillance camera in Washington Park.

How much does illegal dumping in Milwaukee County parks cost?

But even with these mitigation efforts, there has been a financial toll on the Parks Department. Bratt told supervisors that 600 hours of staff time were used for cleanup every year at an annual cost of $14,000, which does not include the cost of hiring outside vendors to clear medical waste.

"It's manpower, which means other stuff is not getting done," Taylor said. 'We are short-staffed. We don't have near what we used to have."

Bratt explained that the current efforts to tackle the dumping could be increased, which could include increasing the dollar amounts for fines. The Parks Department is allowed to impose a civil penalty of $200 for each day the dumping remains on county property and also has the authority to cite people for disposing of waste on county property.

The civil penalty has not been adjusted since 1997, and Bratt suggested an increase to $5,000, which would be in alignment with what the City of Milwaukee imposes. Some other measures could include impounding vehicles of individuals caught dumping and the car parts could be sold to pay for the cleanup.

"Somebody should be receiving a bill from Milwaukee County," Supervisor Felesia A. Martin said. "We're not here to play games anymore."

The Parks Department is also working with the Sheriff's Office and the Park Rangers to maintain an active presence in the county parks as well as installing additional surveillance cameras to document the illegal dumping.

Bratt is also hoping for a more collaborative effort between the City and the County to tackle dumping across the Milwaukee area moving forward.

Contact Vanessa Swales at 414-308-5881 or vswales@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Vanessa_Swales.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What to know about illegal dumping in Milwaukee County parks