Health board presses for littering enforcement

Flathead City-County Board of Health members took Sheriff Mike Meehan to task recently about litter and garbage bags strewn along highways of the Flathead Valley.

Meehan was invited to attend the board’s June meeting after members received no response to a letter delivered to multiple law enforcement agencies in the county. Sent in March, the letter asked for better enforcement of a county ordinance requiring secured loads.

Board members said incidents of large litter were increasing and planned reductions of green box sites may escalate the problem with people hauling trash over longer distances.

“Not only are these an eyesore that detracts from the appeal of our area to tourists and residents, but also the Board of Health believes that a potential health hazard is posed as those bags could be carrying human waste, spoiled food and even possibly blood-contaminated substances,” the letter said.

Meehan told the board that big trucks were required to secure their loads but smaller vehicles face punishment only if trash escapes.

“The minute something flies out, they are subject to a citation,” Meehan said.

The sheriff said his department would follow up on complaints if provided with a video of the violation or some other evidence. He said two citations were issued for littering as a result of surveillance cameras at the landfill.

Board member Dr. Wayne Miller, a longtime advocate of ordinance enforcement, said that litter on the highway shows that many people are not securing their loads. He called Montana 35 and U.S. 93 “a mess” because the county hasn’t discouraged littering.

Meehan said deputies have a difficult time enforcing the ordinance because they can’t prosecute someone unless they observe them dropping the litter. He said he knows of deputies who have gone through garbage bags found on the highway and issued citations to people identified by the contents.

“I disagree that nothing is done,” Meehan said. “I see tickets come across my desk for people who threw a cigarette on the highway.”

Miller said that he has not noticed as much trash along the roadsides of Missoula and Lincoln counties.

Health Officer Joe Russell recalled how he followed an unsecured load on U.S. 93 South. He said he called the Sheriff’s Office but was told to call the Montana Highway Patrol.

“That was really frustrating to me,” Russell said.

He said he was a public official and was willing to sign a complaint after watching trash fly out of the vehicle, but he wasn’t given a chance because the department wouldn’t take his call.

Meehan reiterated that the problem goes back to officers needing something in the trash tying it to the person who disposed of it. Board members questioned his interpretation of Ordinance 8 not applying to vehicles smaller than large trucks.

Meehan said he would research the issue further.

The ordinance was adopted in July 1998 and amended in October 2006. It states that “It is a misdemeanor for any person to haul garbage or trash to the landfill or a container site operated by the Flathead County Solid Waste Management Board without containing, covering or otherwise controlling the load such that no garbage or trash may blow or fall from the vehicle.”

Anyone convicted of violating the ordinance may be fined up to $200 for each violation.

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com.