Rural Upstate New York landowner fighting back against illegal dumping on his property

Dumped trash has been a longtime problem in rural areas. One rural Upstate New York resident, upset that a 200 to 300 pound stainless steel canister was dumped over a guardrail into a creek on his property, has had enough, David Figura reports for Syracuse.com. Property owner Tom Adessa, who serves as the town constable for the towns of Skaneateles and Spafford, "is offering a reward 'of at least $500' for the arrest and conviction of the individual" who dumped the canister on his land. (Adessa photo: The illegally dumped canister)

Adessa, who said there is no evidence that the canister is leaking anything into the creek, told Figura, "Neighbors have told me individuals over the years have dumped deer carcasses, sheep carcasses, garbage, old signs and beat up ladders down there. The truth is, it's an absolutely beautiful ravine, and I hate to see something like this happen. I'm just not going to take it." He said "it's going to take a winch to get out of the creek, which is about 50 to 60 feet below the road. He said he'll have to rappel down with ropes into the ravine to reach it." (Read more)