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Coxsackie officials, residents want tire dumps gone
Sarah Trafton is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media local residents are looking for immediate action to clean up an illegal tire dump in Coxsackie. Town officials received complaints last fall about two tire dumps being operated by Green Tire Recycling — one on Route 81 and one on Surprise Result Road. The state Department of Environmental Conservation has fined the business owner, Shane Foster, a total of $4,500 for both dumps. Foster has so far paid a $750 fine for each location, Coxsackie Town Supervisor Richard Hanse said. The state also set a March 27 deadline for the tires to be removed from both properties, but that has not yet happened, Hanse added. Greene County Sheriff Pete Kusminsky said the sheriff’s office has assisted DEC with its investigation. The tires are an eyesore, David Hotaling of Earlton said. “It’s not like they’re in an area you can’t see, it’s right on 81,” he said. “Everybody that goes up 81 thinks it’s an eyesore. The pile gets bigger all the time. And the town supervisor should be worried about it because if [Foster] takes off, who is going to end up paying for it?” Hanse said Foster had a permit from DEC for one of the locations for a maximum of 1,000 tires that was long ago exceeded. "We're talking over 10,000 tires. And these are truck tires. Not car tires," Hanse said. The town is extremely concerned about the property, the supervisor said in response to Hotaling's comments. “The town is very concerned because, No. 1, it’s a fire hazard; No. 2, it’s a mosquito breeding paradise and No. 3, we never permitted any of it,” he said. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.