Staten Island woman collects $4,000 for reporting illegal dumping to DSNY

A Staten Island woman got a $4,000 check from the city after her phone video helped the Department of Sanitation (DSNY) find a man she filmed leaving five bags of trash at a bus stop. The money came from the Illegal Dumping Award Program, which pays the person who reports a dumper half of the fine.

The woman gave only her first name, Amy, for privacy reasons. Early last month she saw the man at the Yang Yang Park triangle at Decker and Barrett avenues. He left the bags where riders wait for the S57, right beside a Sanitation litter basket. She did not approach him. After he drove away, she reported it to 311 and posted her footage in a local Facebook group.

How the NYC illegal dumping reward works

DSNY started the program last November, and 29 people have reported dumpers through it so far. Amy’s video showed the vehicle’s license clearly enough for the department to track down the driver it later fined. The department issued two fines totaling $8,000: one for the dumping and one to the car’s owner. Half of that money went to Amy.

Amy said she had expected about $100 and was shocked by the amount. She paid her Con Ed and gas bills, bought groceries, and spent some of it on a manicure, pedicure and haircut.

Cheaper ways to get rid of trash legally

Dumping personal trash on public property, especially large items, has always been illegal. Household trash is collected for free, and the city caps private pickup prices at $17.64 per 100 pounds.

A DSNY spokesperson said contractors often dump bags of construction debris on streets, lots and sidewalks they think are out of the way. The spokesperson said crews used to clean the same spots over and over while the dumping went on, and residents felt no one cared.