Some Local Excitement and Oil Spills
Today, there is an open house at the community garden which is why I came home with the kids (that and a dire need for a warm soothing shower). I woke up to find that it is storming here and hope that it will stop by the time the party is on. This is a great way to get more connected to others. I know my permaculture and beekeepers Yahoo Meetup crews are invited and look forward to meeting others, outside the groups, who share interests.
On Thursday, a fellow gardener and I were hoping that some day, we could over winter our plots. We want to experiment. I had been meaning to ask Kirsten, the director about that and so had he. He left before I did and I forgot all about it. As I left, I ran into Kirsten who was weeding the apple orchard. She mentioned to me that yes, in fact she would love it if we tried to over winter and would join us herself in the experiment. I’m trying to decide if I want to build a cold frame or go for a polytunnel but I haven’t run this by Garry, my husband yet because he is up at the farm up to his neck with work. I don’t think he want’s to hear about one more project at the moment.
Today was the day we were supposed to go on that forage but that is on hold. We also have an event next week-building rustic fences out of logs, twigs, etc. The woman we were supposed to go forage with is teaching that one and I hope we can be here for it. This woman, Nance Klehm, has evaded me forever which so often happens when you really want to meet and learn from somebody. They say that when the student is ready, the teacher appears. I may not be ready then, but almost!
So he called me last night after taking his nightly walk through the property. This is how he thinks. He happened by the property line that butts up against the township centers property line. The last time we walked it together, we noticed that while somebody was mowing that parcel the day before, they came across our line and chopped down two pine trees that were alive and well. These trees were somebodies live Christmas trees, rather small, but still-ours. Accident?
Then last night, he saw something odd. He saw an oil spill on our land. From what he said, it looked like somebody was discarding oil purposely rather than disposing of it properly and he said there was lots of it. I went to bed so pissed off I could of throttled the responsible party (which I will not do, as tempting as it is at the moment)
The township center has a shed where we notice farmers depositing grain. The shed is some sort of collection area but we did confirm that ownership was the township. We need more details but I will tell you this: I didn’t want to have to make enemies up there but that doesn’t mean I am unwilling to go right ahead and kick some ass if I have too. Figuratively of course. I am not one to bow down and let things like this go. Justice! I demand it!
Its disgusting at best and illegal on top of that. I also won’t accept a simple “I didn’t know” excuse. Everybody knows that its illegal and everybody knows it not their land but ours. Some neighbors. Can’t wait to meet them.
So dear readers, I need advise on two things:one is the best way to approach this without getting a lawyer (I know to keep my head and mind my manners) and two, how does one go about cleaning up an oil spill? By cleanup, I mean removing toxins from the land it has contaminated. Mushrooms?
In the event of an oil spill, the Army makes us dig up the affected area and they process the dirt elsewhere. This is for small amounts of a few drops up to really big spills. I suspect that they burn it out.
There may be local criminal liabilities involved. You would be well served to set up a game camera to catch the people and just turn it into the police. That way you will not be on the hook for paying any fines.
Unless it is a very large amount the EPA won’t care. My brother did an oil change, knocked over the bucket, and his busybody neighbors called the EPA (!) on him. There was no fine or anything. When I make contact with my brother I will find out if they even bothered with paperwork.
Around here we are supposed to report oil spills to either the local council or to the EPA & I think they advise you on clean up requirements. I think Jdude is right though, you will probably need to dig it all up & find out where to send it safely. Whoever your local authority is, they should also be able to tell what action they will take to find the dumper.
Do you have a local newspaper in the area? They might run a story on the illegal dumping (& the tree removal). Might at least get a message out that you’re not going to just let them continue.
I think the newspaper may be a good idea because a near by neighbor had found the septic tank cleaners dumping on her property last year but……she was black listed socially for raising an alarm about it. The local authorities didn’t seem to be helpful according to her. The natives there are very connected to each other and will stick together. Dumping in general seems to be a problem.
Thanks for pointing out that we may face potential fines ourselves. That didn’t even occur to me initially. I didn’t see it myself so I can’t say whether its a large amount or not. My concern is that it may have been going on for a very long time. Husband is picking up a sample of the soil to have it tested. I know somebody who is close to the sheriff up there so I may give her a call to see where we stand from a legal standpoint. If its a criminal charge, I’m willing to go there. It must at least be vandalism.
The EPA guys just told my brother to dig up the dirt, mix and stomp it thoroughly with kitty litter, then bag it and trash it.
well, i think i would start with the realtor that sold you the house/land and ask her for suggestions how to handle the problems – re: who to call re: spill AND i would include your being upset about the loss of the trees – first she may have some great input and 2nd she will surely pass the story and will surely pass your concerns along…………..(when the land was surveyed, did you get specific boundary understanding for yourselves that guarantee the land with the problems is yours?) – also, let it be known you are assuming the spill was an accident and would prefer not to get anyone into trouble- and how nice it would be if ’someone(s)’ give you info and help re: how to clean it up………while you figure out what you are going to do about replacing the trees…………along with info re: how much you are enjoying readying the house/land – how wonderful everyone is that you’ve met so far etc. and then wait to see what happens – it’s a slow and indirect approach but that’s how it’s done
Thanks for looking into this for me Jdude-much appreciated. So its a rather simple matter it seems. Disposal is where we would get stuck though. We have a dump with specs that will not take garden anything.
Thanks for this Kiki. Yes we are able to confirm that it is our land. My husband is golfing with the agent today and he promised he would tell her what happened. I am waiting to hear back. It will be hard to pretend but it might be an accident but I take the tread lightly at first approach as the wisest. The issues with land, surveyed or not is that the large farmers (agribusiness types) encroach all the time. We have a neighbor who is constantly in court over encroachment so we have been watching the border we share with the agribusiness people like hawks. So far so good. I didn’t count on the city center being the problem.
the city center won’t be a problem unless you take a wicked, nasty stand -(the farming community mantra: you catch more flies with honey than vinegar lolol) – so leave the city approach in the city – you just want to make sure you are on the side with the locals and local law ie. not ostracized – you’ll see with a little time who will step up and help out………..the next step, if nothing comes from your first round of ’sharing’ your concerns is to start sharing with the locals that have been around awhile…………ie. how much you are enjoying prepping the land, how wonderful everyone is – just one troubling issue and that’s the boundary issue………….that you’re sure it was an accident, just want to find a way to rectify without causing any trouble and would really appreciate help with how to approach and actual clean up (also include a nice little, non threatening question to same ie. “what trees would you recommend we replace the accidently cut ones with? – we are asking a few locals and will decide from recommendation pro/cons – wondering if there was a reason why the evergreens were there” ie. in a case like this where it will take a little time for the community grapevine to do it’s ‘thing’, state your grievance and then move on to ‘neighborly’ talk – these small communities police always look for ‘neighbors’ to figure out there own ‘differences’, knowing most things don’t require a heavy hand……………as you said it may have been a city employee and i’m sure they will get an earful (privately) when the story gets to the right ear (which it will using the community grapevine)……the agribusiness is a whole other story – let me know how the ’steps’ progress
The first step was that we walked the property line, photographed it and if any posts were down, we put them back up. We are going to get those neon orange flags to put on each post as well. I think that simply being there, taking care of the land and making our presence known is the main thing. The encroachments are usually on land where there are remote dividing lines but some are actually more blatant. State law says that if a farmer encroaches by planting corn for example, the property owner cannot take possession of that crop, they cannot burn it down, they cannot eat it. They can take it to court to make sure the encroacher gets their wrist lightly slapped. Its all on the side of agribusiness. I thought Chicago was corrupt! Maybe I should run for mayor up there:)
I am waiting until my husband comes home with photos of the spill and so we could talk before we do anything but whatever we do, I want it to yield a permanent solution. How do I make it clear that I will not tolerate this sort of garbage ever again? Honestly, I don’t feel like being nice but will be if I have to be. whatever works. We will come up with a good strategy. Husband met a well connected person up there. Will see where it leads.
yup it isn’t easy learning a new way – you have to do what you think is right for you – good luck kiddo