A pile of trash left behind by a pair of campers along Beaver Lake Road.
Image Credit: Okanagan Forest Task Force
March 23, 2021 - 1:30 PM
More than half a ton or 660 kilograms of garbage left beside a popular Kelowna area road recently is just the tip of a growing garbage pile being dumped in the region, according to the Okanagan Forest Task Force.
The 660 kilograms of trash was discarded by just two people who had set up camp for about a week and a half along Beaver Lake Road.
"We knew where they were and were told (by the campers) 'oh we won't leave a mess' and things like that. But you get promised the stars and the moon," task force president Kane Blake told iNFOnews.ca.
He says they found some I.D.s among the trash, as well as clothing, DVDs, cutlery, and pots and pans, "all kinds of stuff".
The campers were a man and woman, and Blake believes they were in their early 30s.
A tent is seen among a pile of trash left behind by campers beside Beaver Lake Road
Image Credit: Okanagan Forest Task Force
He says RCMP attended to the scene during cleanup on Sunday, March 21, and collected items including the I.D.s found.
Blake also told iNFOnews.ca the amount of garbage being dumped in the region his agency deals with, between Peachland and Vernon, has been escalating over the past two years.
"Certain locations are really bad. We're just starting to see more garbage, in general, show up... (We're seeing) all different kinds of things, whether it's cars, household garbage, yard trimmings," Blake said, adding his agency has picked up over 300,000 pounds or over 136,000 kilograms, since Sept. 2016.
"It's really disturbing knowing there's that much garbage being constantly dumped in our backcountry. This backcountry is for all of us. We all like to go into the bush, and it's too bad some are wrecking it for others. It's really disgusting."
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