What would you do -- neighbor's trash?

Cygnet · #1 04/21/08, 05:17 PM

I'm at wit's end with these people. Family of (now) 13 children, four adults (three sets of cousins, grandparents, one adult son, girlfriend).

I will be the first to confess that I am not the neatest person. There's plenty of "junk" in my yard that's mine. I'm working on cleaning it up -- I was out of commission with back trouble for over a year.

However, about three weeks ago, I filled ten 35 gallon trash bags with trash that had blown or been thrown onto my 2.4 acre parcel from their lot. They're upwind from me. And it was NASTY trash. Kitchen garbage. Styrofoam meat trays. Rotted vegetables. Dirty diapers.

They burn their trash, but only do it periodically. I'm fine with them burning it -- if they'd DO it. (Burning trash is not technically legal, but since I have a burn barrel of my own for certain items, like yard waste, I am not going to report them. It's 50 miles to the nearest dump and I don't want to lose that "privilege" of burning my own stuff as needed.)

They pile up the garbage ... and leave it. For days. Weeks. It blows everywhere. The dogs (including their dogs) scatter it. I am downwind. Can we see the problem?

The next day ... after picking up all the trash the first time ... it looked like I'd never been out there. And again, I picked it all up. And again, the next day ... rinse, lather, repeat. Mind, the adults of the family saw me out there.

I finally blew my stack. Told the kids to go get their grandparents or parents. Was told they were "sleeping" at four PM on a Sunday and they didn't want to come out and see me. My response was to tell the kids to tell the adults I was going to go pound very loudly and continously on their front door until they came out to talk to me, or I was going to call the cops for the littering. And to tell me which they'd prefer.

With that message relayed, the adults came out. I expressed my displeasure at the trash. I also then proceeded to BUILD THEM A WIRE CAGE TO KEEP THEIR TRASH IN with fencing *I BOUGHT* that was dog proof and wind proof. These people are poor. And I had about 30 feet of fencing left over from a project. At $1.50 a foot, that's about $45 ... money well spent if it kept me from @$%$ picking up their @!#$ trash.

They're not using it. Apparently, it must be too much work to lift the trash bags into the cage, and then lift them out again.

The deal is, I can't really call the cops because there's no "proof" where the trash is coming from. The wind "could have" blown it anywhere. Except that since I live here, I've watched them PLENTY of times dump trash on the ground and walk away, like they magically expect it to stay put until burn day. (Plus I'll confess to owning some of the large junk on my property and it looks pretty trashy at the moment ... I'm trying to clean it up, but it's like treading water trying to keep up with what blows onto my lot from THEIR lot, plus clean up MY mess.)

I am not sure what else to do ... I am sure getting boiling mad, though.

Suggestions?

TxAprilMagic · #2 04/21/08, 05:25 PM

If you see them do it ,take pictures of them and the trash as close as you can get (zoom in) then take pictures of the trash when it appears in your yard and that should be enough to call the Sheriff and get something done. I wouldn't keep picking it up nor would I build someone a garbage cage that treated a neighbor like that.

puddlejumper007 · #3 04/21/08, 05:32 PM

what do you think of putting up a fence so when the trash blows it would stay on their side ?

Cygnet · #4 04/21/08, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by puddlejumper007

what do you think of putting up a fence so when the trash blows it would stay on their side ?

Planning on it, but there's a couple big trees that will need to be moved before I can pull fence. $$$ to hire a dozer.

-- Leva

CocalicoSprings · #5 04/21/08, 05:41 PM

Dump the trash you pick up on their front porch. If that doesn't do the trick, either fence your property or move.

Jennifer L. · #6 04/21/08, 06:06 PM

Well. They aren't going to change. They don't mind being slobs. It's all going to be up to you. Don't bother with the trees, put the fence up, anyway, even if it's just the woven wire draped up like clothesline. It will stop the trash and for the most part will do the trick.

Otherwise, watch for an envelope with their names on it and call the cops. Oh, and get your cage back. If they aren't going to use it, no sense leaving good wire there for them to just trash. Frankly, I don't think the cops will mind going to the door and talking to them even if nothing else gets done. And it might get through to them at least to a degree that you really don't want their trash.

They are probably on some kind of government program, types like that always are. Maybe you can turn them in for some kind of violation if you are lucky.

Good luck. I feel for you. I've had neighbors like that, albeit some distance away from my house, but they keep their place looking like a town dump.

Jennifer

Cygnet · #7 04/21/08, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CocalicoSprings

Dump the trash you pick up on their front porch. If that doesn't do the trick, either fence your property or move.

Tried dumping it, actually, in their back yard, neatly bagged, next to their burn barrel.

By the next day, they hadn't done anything with it, and their dogs (chihauhaus) had scattered it.

(At least it's chihauhaus that they're letting run loose. The last time one of the chis tried to chase a goat, the goats won.)

-- Leva

ErinP · #8 04/21/08, 06:12 PM

What I do:
I keep my neighbors at a healthy distance so these things simply are not issues. Currently, it's three miles to my nearest one. We get along swimingly.

june02bug · #9 04/21/08, 07:08 PM

County Code Enforcement & Health Dept.

Txsteader · #10 04/21/08, 07:35 PM

Yep, that's a health department issue. Give 'em a call.

mwhit · #11 04/21/08, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Txsteader

Yep, that's a health department issue. Give 'em a call.

Good luck with that...

this used to be my yard before I bought the place:
What would you do -- neighbor's trash? - Homesteading Questions

Yes, those are horses eating from the pile

There was garbage everywhere-- it looks neatly bagged, but believe me, it wasn't. Nobody seemed to be able to do anything about it-- they'd show up, issue a citation and he'd pay the fine. He never cleaned it up.

Michelle

DaleK · #12 04/21/08, 09:16 PM

Not sure what to do with a lot that small. If it was on my place I'd plant some hay around their property and soak it down with manure on a fairly regular basis through the summer (say Friday of every long weekend) to paste the garbage down so it doesn't blow so much. Got 3 3000 gallon spreader trucks coming tomorrow to pump out liquid manure as a matter of fact. No neighbour problems at the moment though.

I tend to think that with a little patience, most neighbourhood disputes can be solved through the judicious use of manure.

texican · #13 04/21/08, 09:38 PM

Were these folks trashy before you moved in, or did they get trashy afterwards?

Another reason why I don't like the concept of neighbors....

Common Tator · #14 04/21/08, 09:53 PM

I think the trash attracts rodents and other pests, vermin and disease. Take pictures and call in the County health department.

mwhit · #15 04/21/08, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Common Tator

I think the trash attracts rodents and other pests, vermin and disease. Take pictures and call in the County health department.

Yes, it does. Public Health Sanitation is what they are called here.

mwhit · #16 04/21/08, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by texican

Were these folks trashy before you moved in, or did they get trashy afterwards?

Another reason why I don't like the concept of neighbors....

In my case the pig moved in after I did. The old guy that had always lived here died (he was 95) and his nephew, who was also old and lived out of state, was selling it to this hog on land contract.

It wasn't just garbage and junk-- he seriously abused his animals. The day I saw him burn one of his horses on the nose with a cigar was the day I decided he needed to go

He eventually decided he didn't like living next to me so he stopped paying the taxes (part of the land contract) the old nephew did not want the mess so I bought it cheap

Now I own my neighbors

Michelle

Mel- · #17 04/21/08, 10:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cygnet

Planning on it, but there's a couple big trees that will need to be moved before I can pull fence. $$$ to hire a dozer.

-- Leva

put the fence behind/in front of trees that have to be moved until they are moved.

I use vinyl poultry fencing to line my electric fence. it catches every darn leaf and other stray pieces of trash crossing my yard (er, I've been trying to mulch with newspaper).

CHEAP

PA_MIKE · #18 04/21/08, 10:43 PM

road flare should do the job. If they actually paid for the house instead of welfare maybe they would take care of it.

Cygnet · #19 04/21/08, 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by texican

Were these folks trashy before you moved in, or did they get trashy afterwards?

Another reason why I don't like the concept of neighbors....

They've been here about a year and a half, if I remember right. I've been here seven and a half. The house was a repo they bought.

They were the ones who, the day they moved in, came onto my property, cut a bunch of limbs off my trees, cut some down, chained their dog* to one, and dumped moving-related trash on my property. And they made the comment that they didn't know where the lot line was when I went over to protest! (Who buys property without knowing where the corners are? They only own an acre. It's not hard. They're CLEARLY marked with obvious survey stakes.) First day.

After I ran t-posts along the lot line so they'd know where the line was, they dumped a bunch of construction debris on the lot line which I had to move before I could run a fence!

Right now, there's electric along the lot line so I can run my goats out in the field and keep the weeds down. They complained they had to walk around my property rather than cutting through it! (I haven't enlightened them that the fence is off 99% of the time.)

-- Leva

Dirtslinger · #20 04/21/08, 11:48 PM

Would the 4' plastic snow-fencing staked into the ground at least keep it from blowing onto your land?