Trashing The Planet (or at least one little corner of it)

[quicksandfarmer]

I had some friends who bought a small farm for their horses. In the middle of the pasture was a deep, long ditch full of trash. They set about to lean it out. They pulled out a couple of trash bags and found the filled with old movie film and even an old projector. So they cleaned it all up and sat down to see what they had and discovered about 20 years of homemade ****. They even recognized some of the neighbors minus 30 years. There were dozens of tapes from the thirties and forties. hey ended up donating it to the National Museum of Pornography in D.C.

You win. Nothing I've dug up compares.

 

[JasperFrank]

I looked at many properties while looking for places that were for sale. This around 1994. One stood out as a horror show. It was 40 acres that was a plant nursery. It was narrow, yet long, starting at the base of a hill and going up with southern exposure. At the open house my partner and I took a long walk up the property. Since , you have to see all of it to make an assessment. No one else at the open house did this walk. They just stayed at the base where the house, well, and main nursery was. I began to see many cuts and refills in the hill. Like steps that were then covered up. These just didn't seem like normal geology for that area. Partner and i thought this would make a good place for growing grapes. I got to the top of the property and found one of the new cut outs that had not been covered. It was filled with used pesticide, other machinery chemical containers, and household trash. Looked at a few of the containers and they still had some original contents. I had to sit down and think about all those other filled cuts I had seen. This is what they did. They just cut a step, filled it with trash and then covered it over and year by year just moved up the hill. Back at the open house, I was talking to the realtor and asked her if she had walked the whole property. She had not. So I suggested, with a wink, that she really should explore the top of the hill.

 

[cat fever]

The place I sold last year had a neighbor to the south of my land. I guarantee he never threw anything in the trash can. He had 15 acres to fill up with trash first. I would get so upset that he'd get another piece of junk and park it on the fence line between us. One trailer he had was full of wood scapes and cardboard. Every time it blew....yup in my field it came. I was always pushing crap away from the fence line that they would pile up. I liked where I lived but I hated living next to that neighbor. I moved last year, my new place is clean. There is some junk fencing that needs to be cleaned up and hauled off but given I have 31+ acres it's pretty clean.

 

[Jstpssng]

I looked at many properties while looking for places that were for sale. This around 1994. One stood out as a horror show. It was 40 acres that was a plant nursery. It was narrow, yet long, starting at the base of a hill and going up with southern exposure. At the open house my partner and I took a long walk up the property. Since , you have to see all of it to make an assessment. No one else at the open house did this walk. They just stayed at the base where the house, well, and main nursery was. I began to see many cuts and refills in the hill. Like steps that were then covered up. These just didn't seem like normal geology for that area. Partner and i thought this would make a good place for growing grapes. I got to the top of the property and found one of the new cut outs that had not been covered. It was filled with used pesticide, other machinery chemical containers, and household trash. Looked at a few of the containers and they still had some original contents. I had to sit down and think about all those other filled cuts I had seen. This is what they did. They just cut a step, filled it with trash and then covered it over and year by year just moved up the hill. Back at the open house, I was talking to the realtor and asked her if she had walked the whole property. She had not. So I suggested, with a wink, that she really should explore the top of the hill.

I never found that a realtor gave two whits about what they were listing, as long as they make their sale. I used to do property lines for a local broker. The description said that the lines went to "Jim Brown Brook"; upon walking them I realized that they stopped short of that stream on a smaller, unnamed brook and that the parcel was much smaller than advertised. I spent several days trying to figure out what was going on with the boundaries on that parcel, finally realizing that it was cheaper to eat my time than to attempt what required a licensed surveyor- which I'm not.
I reported what I had found, ate the several hundred dollar loss, and was talking to the new owner a few years later, who still believes that he owns frontage on Jim Brown Brook. After a few years that realtor finally figured out that I wasn't interested in doing any more work for him.

 

[gonnasellit]

I bought a 20 acre parcel of land on which a 94 year old aunt had lived for about 76 years. It's located in south Alabama in a rural area surrounded by farms and woods. People in this area were all dirt poor, including her. Most of the land had once been cultivated but over the years had been allowed to grow up in yaupon and privet bushes. There was also an abundance of what had to be some of the world's largest popcorn (Chinese tallow) trees. I was amazed at what I found when I started clearing it. There were 236 tires scattered all over the property. There were also a couple of barns and a chicken house. Inside the chicken house was a collection of glass jars. The landfill would only take them if they were broken up. I broke and hauled 3,460 pounds of broken glass to the landfill. That's a lot of jars! There was also over 11,000 pounds of scrap metal. There were also junk cars, junk lawnmowers, a pile of debris from a burned down house which had been pushed into the woods, and several piles of household trash. I've so far put over 1,200 hrs. on my tractor doing the cleanup. It's almost back to it's former glory and I hope it stay's that way for generations to come. It's such a shame that there was a time when land seemed to be such a disposable entity to so many people. I guess survival from day to day was priority one.

 

[goeduck]

Holy cow! ^^^^

 

[CobyRupert]

 

[oosik]

The 80 acres I have here is part of an original homestead -1890. We moved down from Alaska in 1982. The old homestead buildings were all generally in one location. Over time they have rotted down and are now part of the soil.

HOWEVER - what remained and to a limited extent, still does. Miles of really old rusted barbed wire. The old homesteader REALLY like his barbed wire and LARGE quantities of nails/spikes. I've given all the old "flat barbed" barb wire to the Historical Society that they could ever want/need.

I finally took everything off my single bottom plow - leaving just a single tooth. I've made many, many passes - snaking out this old barbed wire.

About the time I feel good about this - I will find another run of wire. Thirty eight plus years and it's still coming out of the ground.

 

[cat fever]

This is a thread that should be read by anyone thinking of buying land. It could save them lots of dollars by either not buying or lowering the price of the land because of clean up costs.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Amazing hom many contractors make extra money cleaning up places and taking all kinds of scrap and good stuff away. Even charging them to take their old oil/fuel tanks away, sometimes quite full.

 

[k0ua]

View attachment 598739

That photo explains the mentality of SO many people. My brother in law let his 1969 Chevy pickup rot down at first in the driveway and later in the back field. "I am going to restore it one day". Of course he never did. When he was offered $6000 for it at one point when it was in the driveway, he could not take that, "it was my dads, I couldn't sell it". When he died, his widow traded it off for some work a workman did in her kitchen. I am sure that $6000 would have done them a lot more good, not to mention if they had invested that money. In a word, people are stupid. I tried to tell him many times to take the offers for the old rusty truck, but the "it was my dad's" always came up. I was never built that way. Maybe something is wrong with me?

 

[cat fever]

James,

My brother has a 1968 Olds 442 that mostly needs a paint job and cleaning. It's been sitting under a leanto for 30 years and will continue to until he dies. He needs a bigger tractor bad and I keep telling him, pointing at the car. " There's your tractor right there".

 

[rekees4300]

It is my goal to leave this property a lot better and cleaner than when we found it, I wish everyone would have the same goal.

That's a worthy goal. :thumbsup: Most people feel that way, unfortunately a few inconsiderate people can ruin everything for the many. Don't worry, Mother Earth will soon be making an "adjustment" in the human population. :earth:

 

[k0ua]

James,

My brother has a 1968 Olds 442 that mostly needs a paint job and cleaning. It's been sitting under a leanto for 30 years and will continue to until he dies. He needs a bigger tractor bad and I keep telling him, pointing at the car. " There's your tractor right there".

Yes, but he can't see that. I don't know what it is about people that are just waiting to get a "roun tuit".

 

[Larry Caldwell]

That photo explains the mentality of SO many people. My brother in law let his 1969 Chevy pickup rot down at first in the driveway and later in the back field. "I am going to restore it one day". Of course he never did. When he was offered $6000 for it at one point when it was in the driveway, he could not take that, "it was my dads, I couldn't sell it". When he died, his widow traded it off for some work a workman did in her kitchen. I am sure that $6000 would have done them a lot more good, not to mention if they had invested that money. In a word, people are stupid. I tried to tell him many times to take the offers for the old rusty truck, but the "it was my dad's" always came up. I was never built that way. Maybe something is wrong with me?

I keep a bunch of my dad's stuff. It has sentimental value, but it's all in working condition. His anvil. His MIG welder. Cylinder hones, a ridge reamer, etc. He had a fully equipped farm shop, but I shared the contents with my brother-in-law, who got some of the nifty stuff like the lathe.

 

[rademamj]

I bought a 20 acre parcel of land on which a 94 year old aunt had lived for about 76 years. It's located in south Alabama in a rural area surrounded by farms and woods. People in this area were all dirt poor, including her. Most of the land had once been cultivated but over the years had been allowed to grow up in yaupon and privet bushes. There was also an abundance of what had to be some of the world's largest popcorn (Chinese tallow) trees. I was amazed at what I found when I started clearing it. There were 236 tires scattered all over the property. There were also a couple of barns and a chicken house. Inside the chicken house was a collection of glass jars. The landfill would only take them if they were broken up. I broke and hauled 3,460 pounds of broken glass to the landfill. That's a lot of jars! There was also over 11,000 pounds of scrap metal. There were also junk cars, junk lawnmowers, a pile of debris from a burned down house which had been pushed into the woods, and several piles of household trash. I've so far put over 1,200 hrs. on my tractor doing the cleanup. It's almost back to it's former glory and I hope it stay's that way for generations to come. It's such a shame that there was a time when land seemed to be such a disposable entity to so many people. I guess survival from day to day was priority one.

Wow. Amazing. I suspect your aunt was charging a fee for dumping, or perhaps the neighbors were simply dumping on her property.....and hoping that she never found out.

Shockingly, after I put locked security gates up to prevent access to my property, one morning I found a pickup truck with a trailer full of broken ceramic tiles waiting at my gate, and the driver asked me "what time does the dump open". Also, I have asked the county here in Texas to help me out with the Dumping problem....they actually put up several no dumping signs along the county road fronting my property....which indicates a $10,000 fine for dumping along the county road.

Perhaps the real message should be, to always treat your land with both care and respect, and never ever trash it.

 

[Botaskinner]

X2 on the glass.

I had to cut a foot wide, 50 foot long slot across a patio and driveway to trench for some new electrical (patio and driveway would be repoured later anyway).

Near the end of the trench, I hit a foot thick layer of broken glass, all green wine bottles with screw caps. Easy 100+ of them. No labels anymore, but I'd guess Thunderbird?

Crazy thing, it was right at the edge of what was now the driveway!

So I guess these guys would sit around drinking by their cars, then pitch the bottles into a pile. Eventually it got covered with dirt until I hit it with the trencher 50 years later..

I had to do the new electrical because I lost all power to the well and garage one day.

When I demoed the driveway, I found out why..they had buried a square D junction box with 220V conduit running in and out of it..it eventually shorted and blew the breakers.

Wine and electricity make a bad combination!

 

[Industrial Toys]

Yes people are stupid. But in these cases, I think it may be more just being naive. Many of us, will never finish most of our projects and don't realize how little time we might have left. I know people who have extremely valuable space in their garages or shops with project cars or trucks that never progress at all. It's a crying shame.

We are also going to loose weight and stop smoking starting tomorrow.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

When I was at the DEQ, we got a report of open burning, which at the time was prohibited. Upon inspection, it turns out it was a an area where a battery recycling company had been dumping its old battery cases, and somehow the utility company had set the old battery cases on fire, burning off their right of way or some such. They had paid the farmer for letting them dump their old cases in an arroyo on his pasture. We set up some air monitors, and they went off the chart for lead, hydrocarbons, etc.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Thank God, that's all done over seas now, out of sight, out of mind.