The May 11 Press Herald article “Dealing with rash of trash in woods” (Page B1) brought back many memories.

In the 1980s, I served on the Landowner-Sportsman Relations Committee that was sponsored by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

One of the primary issues we discussed was illegal dumping. It was a major concern to private landowners and a direct cause of posting to prevent public access. It is disheartening to see that so little has changed since then.

It is a difficult crime to prosecute, as the violator is seldom caught in the act and law enforcement officials often have more pressing matters to address. The solution is to develop an onerous penalty system that fits the crime for those who are convicted.

The penalty should include paying the cost of cleaning the landowners’ property, mandatory public service picking up litter along the roadways and in parks and the loss of recreational licenses (hunting, fishing, trapping).

Repeat or egregious offenders should also face a lose of driving license (illegal dumping always has a motor vehicle involved).

If we are serious about eliminating this senseless crime, we need to provide law enforcement officials the tools that they need.

The element of our society that has no respect for private property needs to learn that there are consequences for their unacceptable behavior.

Terry Walters

Hollis

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