SLIDELL, La. (WGNO) — In St. Tammany Parish, more than a thousand illegally dumped tires have hit the road.
The tires covered Leaning Oak Drive for about two years, but according to the public information officer for St. Tammany Parish, Michael Vinsanau, it’s been quite a process to remove them.
“We’ve been known about this for, you know, a few years now, one, two, three years, but it just takes time to be able to get that contract, to get the permit going,” explained Vinsanau. “And today’s the day we finally came together, and we can make this happen.”
The tires are being taken to a disposal site in Port Allen.
Parish officials say it was important that the cleanup process started before the warm weather hits.
“Everybody will complain when you have mosquitoes in the area,” said Vinsanau. “Fortunately, it’s cooler right now. So, we don’t see a whole lot of mosquitoes, but when the summer comes around, obviously, that’ll become an issue because these tires hold water.”
A business owner nearby who rents out his property called the sight an eyesore and says that it affected business.
“We’ve had two possible tenants come by over the year, and we didn’t hear back from them,” said Rob Boyd. “I said, ‘Hey, is there still an interest?’ and they probably, you know… nobody wants to see it.”
Boyd says he’s happy that the parish is taking action.
“After pulling up today, we’ve been back and forth here because we rent the shop out, and I said, ‘Hey,’ I called the wife; I was excited. I said, ‘Hey, I think they’re coming to clean it up today. I saw two big carriers come in.’ So now, I see them; they’re getting it done. And hey, Slidell needs it,” said Boyd.
According to Vinsanau, 1,200 tires were retrieved Tuesday because that’s what the permit they obtained from the Department of Environmental Quality allowed.
There are about one thousand tires left, and the parish is actively pursuing another permit to begin removal once again.