Who's helping clean up state's trash problem?

BOSTON — Have you ever seen the trash that's along the side of the highways?

The amount of trash isn't a problem the state created, but it is one they're responsible for. And, some critics say they aren't doing enough.

FOX25 Investigates discovered the state is fighting an uphill battle when it comes to clean up. And, there's not much of a deterrent. FOX25’s investigative reporter Kerry Kavanaugh learned the state rarely goes after careless litter bugs.

"Is this 'Trashachusetts' or Massachusetts” asked Neil Rhein with the non-profit, ‘Keep Massachusetts Beautiful’.  Rhein says the amount of trash is an environmental crisis that goes beyond the aesthetics.

"Much of this trash ends up in our waterways eventually, which ends up in our oceans on our beaches,” Rhein said

There are several groups responsible for cleaning up 15,000 miles of highway. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation oversees them all.

The state has their own workers, and they spend $1.3 million on inmate labor programs. There are volunteers plus two private companies which sell road sponsorships in exchange for litter removal.

"Are they effective and do you have evidence that they're effective?” FOX25’S Kerry Kavanaugh asked highway administator, Tom Tinlin.

“Between our resources and their resources picking up 90,000 trash bags a year and 360 tons of electronics, think about what our roads would look like if we didn't have these relationships and we weren’t out there every day doing it,” Tinlin said.

FOX25 showed Tinlin video of some of the trash found along the highways

"It's like you’re fighting the tide,” Tinlin said. “You clean it up and the next day it's horrible again."

Tinlin says they tackle the problem day in and day out as best they can, but the state does not have a separate budget for litter removal.

"These are the same people who are responded to car crashes and setting up work zones, fixing guardrails and poles. On top of all that, they have to pick up somebody else's mess," Tinlin told FOX25.

It seems there's little deterring litter bugs. Through a public records request, FOX25 learned Massachusetts State Police have issued fewer than 100 citations since 2013.

In 2012, they issued 37. The next year they handed out 33, followed by 22 in 2015. As of May of 2016, state troopers had issued just one.

“I just don't think it's been a priority, Rhein said. “I don’t think people quite realize how it is out here. There's no coordinated effort.

Both the state and environmental advocates agree prevention is key to this issue.

The state also asks that if you see trash along the side of the road, report it. Motorists who would like to report litter can do so by calling the MassDOT Highway Call Center at (857) 368-3500 or emailing dotfeedback@dot.state.ma.us

Cox Media Group