Officials: Trash, dead animals dumped on public lands

Officials say public lands west of the Menan Buttes in Jefferson and Madison counties have become a dumping ground.

“They’ll dump appliances, TVs, whatever and use that as their shooting target and leave that debris here,” said Monica Zimmerman, an outdoor recreation planner for the Bureau of Land Management.

There are also dead cows and elk. Just recently, patrols discovered 17 dead cattle lying in a heap on land near Roberts.

“I think it’s just to save a little bit of money. I think they charge $10 to dispose of a cow carcass properly,” said Jeremy Casterson, field manager for the BLM’s Upper Snake River Office.

“People who use public lands don’t want to see these bodies, smell these bodies,” said Casterson.

In 2007, the BLM had to close off a section of land because it had been completely taken over by trash. Just feet from a sign explaining this decision, Local News 8 found more trash.

The BLM said that while there are regular patrols in the area, they’ve had little success catching someone in the act of dumping.

Casterson said they’re considering putting up surveillance cameras.

“We can’t obviously put them everywhere, but we could pick some select spots and try to catch someone in the act with the camera,” said Casterson.

Those caught dumping on public lands can face fines depending on the types of materials they dump.