On May 14, William John Caddy, 38, from Johnstown was found guilty of illegally dumping shingles, buckets, cement and other debris on Hohan Avenue/Kingston Lake Trail in Middle Taylor Township by the Honorable Mary Ann Zanghi.

Caddy was fined $454. He has the right to appeal the ruling. 

The illegally dumped material and a receipt were found by the Laurel Highlands Historical Society during one of their routine cleanups of the area. The evidence was turned over to the Johnstown Police Department and following an investigation, Caddy was charged with illegal dumping by Officer Jeffrey W. Janciga.

“I don’t cry easily, and I’m known as not being a very emotional person, but I cried when I saw the new dumping.  Three communities had just worked so hard to clean this area,” said Paulette Baker, a member of the Laurel Highlands Historical Society.

The Laurel Highlands Historical Society recently contacted Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful requesting assistance with deterring illegal dumping at this location and has plans to formally adopt the area through the Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s adoption program.

“Illegal dumping is not only detrimental to the environment but also brings a financial burden to our local communities as they are often the ones left to clean up the mess,” explained Shannon Reiter, President of Keep PA Beautiful. 

Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful found that on average, it costs local communities $600/ton or nearly $3,000 for an average illegal dump cleanup.

In this case, work crews from Cambria County, Middle Taylor Township and volunteers from the Laurel Highlands Historical Society spent a day cleaning up the dumped debris which filled two dump trucks and resulted in 4,920 pounds of trash. Waste Management’s Laurel Highlands Landfill accepted the waste at no charge.

“We are grateful for the involvement of local organizations and businesses such as the Laurel Highlands Historical Society and Waste Management willing to work together to benefit the community as well as the efforts of local authorities to identify illegal dumpers and hold them accountable,”  Reiter further explained.

Questions regarding proper disposal of waste in Cambria County can be answered by Kris Howdyshell at Cambria County Solid Waste Management Authority at 814-472-2109.

To learn about what you can do prevent illegal dumping in your community, visit the Illegal Dump Free PA website.

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