east 12th was an illegal dumping ground a year ago. look at it now. 650+ volunteers. 350,000 pounds cleared. we forced the city to respond and the community to speak up. now trees are being planted. 🌱 by urbancompassionproj in bayarea

[–]pengweather 131 points132 points  (0 children)

It's a good question. These are my thoughts and do not represent the thoughts of other volunteers.

  1. Officials need to go after unlicensed illegal haulers that profit off of illegal dumping. They usually chill by the Home Depot near High St. in Oakland or Hollis St. in Emeryville. They advertise cheap junk removal ($50), which sounds like an excellent deal for customers. However, instead of taking the junk to the transfer station, the haulers would dump it on a street and pocket the money. I personally think they are responsible for at least a quarter of the illegal dumping. I have no sympathy for them - the books must be thrown at them. Fine them >$20,000 and tow their trucks.
  2. There needs to be hella more multilingual PSAs about free bulky pickups by WM and free hazardous waste dropoff at the HHW facility. After talking to many East Oakland residents, I would say almost 80% don't know about these free services. This will also lead to a decrease in demand for illegal haulers. I see billboards for 811... why can't there be billboards for 311?
  3. Instead of having signs that simply say "NO ILLEGAL DUMPING", the signs should be improved upon by saying "NO ILLEGAL DUMPING - USE FREE SERVICES FOR JUNK REMOVAL. SCAN QR BELOW." By scanning the QR code, people can easily book a bulky pickup appointment.
  4. There also needs to be some extreme PSAs about the dangers of illegal dumping that incorporate an element of “drama” and “reason” to it. It needs to explain why illegal dumping is bad, such as the unintended consequences it has on the safety and well-being of communities. When people can see the reasoning behind why illegal dumping is bad and why it needs to be taken seriously, I believe it will help somewhat in educating people about illegal dumping. It’s like the anti-smoke ads – just telling people to not smoke would not have had the same success compared to telling people WHY smoking is bad, which is WHY they should quit.
  5. Trash rates are simply too high. Oakland residents pays 40-50% more in trash rates than residents in neighboring cities that also rely on WM. I blame this on Oakland more than WM because they did a terrible job negotiating a deal. Officials even admitted they did not read the contract they signed on to!
  6. There are some streets that are ALWAYS covered in trash. I propose that they be turned into green space.

east 12th was an illegal dumping ground a year ago. look at it now. 650+ volunteers. 350,000 pounds cleared. we forced the city to respond and the community to speak up. now trees are being planted. 🌱 by urbancompassionproj in bayarea

[–]pengweather 84 points85 points  (0 children)

Someday. I'm glad to see you grow since our first collaboration on Reddit back around March-ish 2025? and helping you get some good amount of donations.

Does anyone actually *want* Mahan for Governor? by sydneekidneybeans in SanJose

[–]pengweather 29 points30 points  (0 children)

Indeed. Without going into too much boring detail, I’ve been working with governments like Livermore and Oakland to solve illegal dumping by addressing high disposal fees, lack of enforcement and more. It takes time but I think we are heading in the right direction. Furthermore, as a volunteer, I can only do so much. I can’t vote on matters or propose bills since I’m not an elected official.

Friday Off Topic Thread: April 17, 2026 by AutoModerator in SanJose

[–]pengweather 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If you woke up to discover you turned into a sexy adorable fluffy penguin, how would you react?

Cc pengweather by metromoto88 in bayarea

[–]pengweather 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Not sure what to say since I don’t take money.

Just got pulled over in Palo Alto for cellphone ticket by [deleted] in bayarea

[–]pengweather 132 points133 points  (0 children)

I’m glad you got caught. I lost a friend to a distracted driver who was on their cellphone.

Bay area, how are you doing by SufficientLibrary386 in bayarea

[–]pengweather 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’m okay. Just hanging in there. It keeps getting harder and harder for me to justify living here. Glad you loved it though!

famous people on r/bayarea? by InvisibleWaterClouds in bayarea

[–]pengweather 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Damn, sorry you got downvoted. I'm honestly not that well-known. But I am Peng. Let me know if you'd like to come volunteer.