More fines imposed for illegal waste dumping in Offenbach

The city of Offenbach continues to take action against illegal waste dumping. The evaluation of Offenbach's defect reporter has even shown a significant decrease in reports of illegal dumping compared to the previous year. In addition to illegal dumping, other defects such as discarded scrap bicycles, defective street lighting and seven other issues can be reported to the city for quick resolution. At the same time, the amount of fines imposed by the public order office has increased in recent years.

According to the city's public order office, 6,094 cases of illegal waste dumping were reported via the defect detector between January and June last year. In the first six months of the current year, there were 3,584 reports. That is a sharp decline. In view of the fact that the Offenbach Defect Notifier is gaining new users every month, this decline is considerable. This decline is also in line with the ESO's data on the amount of waste actually removed in the city. "The trend in the figures is of course pleasing. However, my personal impression is that the problem is actually increasing. This is certainly due to the numerous household and small waste deposits - especially in the city center. But it's also due to the waste deposited in used glass and clothing containers in the city. These deposits are even more noticeable than bulky waste deposits, which are often registered with the waste disposal company," says Paul-Gerhard Weiß, Head of Public Order.

These are problems that the city's public order office and Stadtwerke Offenbach's Stadtservice have been dealing with intensively for years. Several measures have already been implemented to counteract this. Of particular note is the 48-hour waste disposal guarantee, which was introduced at the beginning of 2023 and as part of which the entire investigation and disposal process was digitalized. "By digitizing the processes, it was possible to ensure that waste disappears from public spaces more quickly and at the same time our waste investigators are on site faster to investigate the polluters," says Christian Broos, Head of the "Clean Offenbach" Stabsstelle at the Public Order Office. In the year before the 48-hour litter guarantee was introduced, the law enforcement officers issued fines amounting to 26,851 euros. Last year, the sum was twice as high at 70,105.40 euros. "This is not about filling the city coffers. We need to increase the pressure on those who are responsible for these conditions through their behavior. We can only do this if it hurts our wallets," says Weiß. Nevertheless, in many cases it is not possible to find the person or persons responsible, as the evidence is sometimes insufficient or there are simply no clues to be found.

This is where the bulky waste campaign launched this year comes in as part of the fight against the causes. Since mid-April, all illegal deposits in a project area in the Mathildenviertel have been marked twice a week with stickers and larger deposits with barrier tape. This is a striking reminder to residents and passers-by that the dumping is illegal and that the public order office has already started an investigation. The aim of the campaign is, on the one hand, to point out what is illegal, as experience shows that this knowledge is lacking in parts of the population. On the other hand, it also aims to educate people on how to dispose of their waste correctly or how to inform the public order office of any tips. After all, identifying the perpetrators of illegal waste dumping often depends on the observations of neighbors.

Whether the campaign has already contributed to the reduction in illegal dumping can only be answered in late summer when the results of the project are evaluated. According to Christian Broos, the feedback from the population in the project area during the marking work was generally very positive. The intensified small waste controls by the public order office, ten of which have already been carried out this year and have resulted in 68 fines amounting to 5,020 euros, are also part of the strategy in the fight for more cleanliness in public spaces.

The city is calling on all citizens to continue to play an active role and report any illegal littering. "Overall social problems can only be solved through joint social commitment. In this way, we can all contribute to keeping our surroundings clean. And all residents must have an interest in this," says Head of Public Order Weiß.

Old clothes and bin liners in particular, which are increasingly being left next to collection containers and on sidewalks, continue to pose a major challenge for the city. According to Weiß, this is a nationwide trend that has both social and economic causes. This is also confirmed by Christian Broos, Head of the "Clean Offenbach" Stabsstelle of the Public Order Office: "We have been observing for some time that the used clothing market is gradually collapsing. New clothes are now often cheaper than the market price for old clothes. As a result, fewer and fewer customers are willing to buy used clothing. Unfortunately, we see the result directly on the street: overfilled containers are piling up - old clothes and waste are lying next to the containers in public spaces as a result.

This trend has already led to container operators in several municipalities withdrawing and there are fewer and fewer opportunities to dispose of old clothes properly. According to the public order office, this has led to the container locations being increasingly misused as garbage dumps. According to Weiß, this is a growing social problem that can be observed in large cities in particular and is not limited to the issue of waste. There are similar developments in road traffic and construction. Although there are no quick solutions, the city of Offenbach is working more intensively and efficiently than many other cities to combat this problem.

Anyone in Offenbach who would like to arrange an appointment for bulky waste can contact ESO Customer Service on 069-84 0004 545. Illegal dumping can be reported to the city via the "Offenbacher Mängelmelder" smartphone app or via the "Mängelmelder" internet platform (see below). If you have any information about the perpetrators, the waste investigators at the Public Order Office can be contacted on the waste hotline number: 069 8065 4747.