Unlawful dumping = big costs

Disposing of unwanted items alongside county roads is a growing concern, is considered littering and is unlawful by Nebraska revised state statute 28-523.

With hundreds of miles of county roads in Kimball County, unlawful dumping of debris along those roads can become a big problem.

Anyone found guilty of this offense the first time will be found guilty of a Class III misdemeanor, punishable by up to three months in jail or a fine of up to $500, or both.

A second offense will be a Class II misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail or a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

Any subsequent offense will be deemed a Class I misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment for up to one year or a $1,000 fine, or both.

Roadside dumping costs taxpayers time and money and in some Kimball County cases, the landowner where debris is dumped is liable for the clean-up, according to Kimball County Sheriff Harry Gillway.

"Though we contact the department of roads to help, quite often clean-up is up to the landowner where the debris is found," he said. "We have taken garbage out to the county shop and have actually gone through it in an attempt to identify the responsible party. We try to find the people who dump things and have them clean it up. These people that leave couches, refrigerators, household items...people can't just pick that up."

Gillway added that the issue is most prevalent along county roads and that Union Pacific Railroad has made complaints most often.

Additionally, many of the items recklessly dumped on the side of county roads can be taken to the Kimball Landfill free of charge for Kimball and Kimball County residents who pay to use the service.

Free items include appliances, clothing, furniture and household waste.

Kimball resident Jerry Baluska recently called when he found some items disposed of alongside a county road outside of Bushnell.

"I saw it and didn't think it was right so I cleaned it up and took it to the landfill. I decided it needed to get cleaned up and I would have to do it myself," he said. "The people at the landfill were really nice and did not charge me anything."

Gate Fees (C & D) per cubic yard:

$9.75 County residents

$35.00 Non-county residents

$19.00 Unseparated load

$25.00 Uncontained load

Tree Logs, Branches, Stumps, Non-treated wood/pallets:

$$$Free$$$ if can be processed by controlled burn

C & D Rate large logs, trees, branches, stumps, etc.

Scrap Tires:

$6.00 Passenger car tire

$13.00 Truck tire

$45.00 Tractor tire

$80.00 Construction Machinery tire