WASTE ISSUES

Waste.  A word that means “an unused or unwanted portion” but that also means “to squander”.  More and more, Americans are awake to both the shortsightedness of squandering our resources as well as the problem of what to do with that “unused or unwanted portion” that can become poisonous as it piles up.  Even desert residents, who have more open space than most, realize that excessive or improperly handled waste can threaten the safety of water supplies and endanger humans and wildlife.

Below you will find more information and resources on:

WASTE AND RECYCLING

Everyone, of any age or situation, can make a difference in the production and handling of waste.  Recycling, conservation, and source reduction are all actions for which we can take personal responsibility. 

Puzzled on how to proceed?  The California Integrated Waste Management Board Website has extensive information and referrals for every kind of waste or recycling question, including where to buy recycled products.

For waste and recycling options, programs, and requirements in your particular area:

Twentynine Palms:

• Burrtec Waste and Recycling Services

Yucca Valley:

• Solid Waste/Recycling Division

 County of San Bernardino:

• County Solid Waste Management Division, including:
  • Locations of landfills and transfer stations, with maps and hours of operation
  • Fees
  • Hazardous waste and E-waste information and facilities
  • Composting and green waste
  • Recycling and source reduction
  • Local waste haulers
  • Surplus
• County Environmental Health Services
• County Code Enforcement - illegal dumping complaints

IMPORTED WASTE:  THE DESERT AS URBAN DUMPING GROUND

“Waste” is a problem that our Disposable Nation has tried to solve by sending it Out of Sight, Out of Mind.  Unfortunately, the desert has often been the first choice of an “out of sight” place.  The California deserts have been the designated wasteland for a multitude of disposal proposals, especially in the 1990s when waste-by-rail became a popular concept.  Ward Valley nuclear dump, Broadwell Dry Lake toxic dump, Bolo-Railcycle and Eagle Mountain household dumps – these are just a few of the projects that would have piled the desert high with mountains of dangerous waste generated far away.  The Morongo Basin Conservation Association has long been adamant that the desert not be regarded as a wasteland and not become the trash receptacle for the problems of urban areas and is proud to have contributed to the defeat of those proposals. 

Eagle Mountain, a massive household-waste proposal for the old Kaiser mining facilities on the east border of the Joshua Tree National Park, is one project that remains a threat to the desert, and MBCA continues to support the fight to defeat it.  Learn more about this dangerous proposal and how you can provide critically needed support at The Desert Protection Project. 

WASTEWATER AND SEWAGE

 County of San Bernardino:

• “The Public Side of Water/Wastewater/Land Use” , County Environmental Health Services
• Got Septic?, Frequently Asked Questions, County Environmental Health Services

Yucca Valley:

• Wastewater Project on Hi-Desert Water Board Website  
• Wastewater Public Advisory Committee (WPAC)
• Septic tank awareness