- TVs and mattresses the most illegally dumped items.
- 1/4 leave their trash on a sidewalk.
- 25% would report a neighbor who illegally dumps trash.
- Interactive map reveals where most illegal dumping happens in America.
We’ve all seen it as we stroll down the sidewalk, drive down the highway, or even if we head to the park: ugly, abandoned items, such as furniture, old mattresses or appliances like washing machines, just waiting to become someone else’s problem, rather than that of the person who left them there.
Illegal dumping of trash is becoming an increasing problem in towns and cities, whether it’s because people are just becoming lazier and more thoughtless, or because they genuinely believe there’s a service which will come and take away their unwanted trash. But while we can all agree it’s a blight on our neighborhoods and green spaces, not to mention a financial burden on the authorities who then have to dispose of it somehow, how many of us are actually guilty of behaving like this ourselves?
Leading mattress review site, Sleepopolis, wanted to find out, so they surveyed 2,250 Americans to see if any would own up to doing it. And, quite shockingly, a quarter of Californians admit to having done so! 25% of residents in towns and cities across The Golden State have done just this – left their old, no-longer-useful possessions somewhere, rather than taking the proper and correct course of action, which is to arrange collection by the local authorities, or taken their trash to official dumping grounds.
State by state, Sleepopolis found that the worst culprits reside in Kentucky, with 43% of respondents admitting to having dumped debris illegally. While the most law-abiding were those from the Last Frontier State, with only 5% of Alaskans having admitted to this – presumably they are loathe to spoil their wild and rugged scenery.
To find out how the rest of America compares, check out our interactive map, https://sleepopolis.com/blog/illegal-garbage-dumping/ (click on ‘embed’ to host on your site)
