Complaints of garbage left at collection centers has increased, and law enforcement officials have received reports of contactors working on businesses and homes and then dumping garbage at the centers, according to the district attorney's office.
Many centers have received tattered mattresses, furniture and car parts in addition to hazardous waste, which center workers then have to clean up.
Local charities have spent up to $1 million per year to clean up garbage left at their doorstep, according to the district attorney's office.
District Attorney Dolores Carr said her office "will vigorously prosecute those individuals who seek an easy way around dealing with their own waste and garbage by dumping it in the laps of others."
Local law enforcement agencies will be a part of the effort. Leaving material at a collection center after hours is considered illegal dumping, as is leaving materials that clearly cannot be used again.
Fines for a first-time offense range from $250 to $1,000, and dumping hazardous waste is a felony offense that could result in jail time, according to the district attorney's office.
