Trash pile grows in 'Ewa Beach
By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Staff Writer
'EWA BEACH — Trash piling up along Fort Weaver Road from a recent state "Adopt-A-Highway" cleanup have community volunteers wondering when either the state or city will come by to pick it up.
The situation has representatives of both the state and city saying the other is responsible for getting rid of the bulky items such as tires and car batteries. All area resident Jeff Alexander wants is someone to take away the garbage.
"If you're going to have people volunteering for this program, you hope someone will come by to pick it up," said Alexander, a member of the " 'Ewa Beach 'Ohana" that regularly cleans along Fort Weaver Road as part of the state's volunteer cleanup program.
After a roadside cleanup during the first week of May, Alexander said the group left several bags of trash, 10 old tires, a car battery and a rug near the 'Ewa Beach Shopping Center for pickup by state road crews.
"We've had more trash in previous cleanups, and the state would come pick it up with no problem," Alexander said. "We've been doing this for 12 years."
Alexander said he has already called the state Department of Transportation several times to find out when they were going to pick up the trash. Since the cleanup, the pile has grown as others have dumped their personal refuse there, including a mattress and refrigerator.
The 'Ewa Neighborhood Board chairman is worried that the trash will encourage others to dump even more refuse there, since Leeward O'ahu already has the reputation as a dumping ground for bulky items.
"I called the DOT last week, and they said they're only going to pick up trash in garbage bags now," he said.
Martin Okabe of the Transportation Department Highways Division's O'ahu district office said it has always been department policy for his crews to pick up only bags of garbage, and the state is not responsible for bulky items. Fort Weaver Road is part of the state Transportation Department "Adopt-A-Highway" cleanup program because it is a state-owned road.
Alexander said he called the city bulky trash pickup program for assistance, but was told it was out of their jurisdiction since it was a state program.
City facilities maintenance director Ross Sasamura responded to the situation yesterday: "We will assist the community in encouraging the state to fulfill its obligation to haul away debris that is collected during a cleanup along a state roadway."
Meanwhile, the pile of garbage gets bigger by the week.
"We already have one trash dump on the Leeward side; we don't need to start a second," Alexander said.
Reach Scott Ishikawa at sishikawa@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.
