Here is how Wichita intends to crack down on illegal dumping
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- Wichita plans to increase fines and expand surveillance to deter illegal dumping.
- City will deploy five cameras in dumping hot spots using police technology like Flock.
- Illegal dumping cleanup has cost Wichita $1.5 million since 2018, officials report.
Wichita is increasing fines — and adding more investigative tools, like cameras — to crack down on illegal dumping.
Illegal dumping has been an issue in parts of the city for several years and has cost it $1.5 million for cleanup since 2018, according to a city council agenda report.
“Neighborhoods get pissed off. Neighborhood presidents get pissed off,” City Councilmember Brandon Johnson said. “Everyday working folks who ... shouldn’t have to deal with that just get irritated. … This is finally some steps to start trying to do something about it.”
On Tuesday, the council approved several steps to increase enforcement of the illegal dumping ordinance, including using police surveillance technology to find offenders. That includes Flock cameras and closed-circuit television.
Five cameras will also be installed in dumping hot spots across the city to catch offenders.
It’s a strategy that, according to Johnson, has already worked.
“One of the places where we’ve successfully stopped illegal dumping, there were cameras there, and the people didn’t know it, and few of them got caught on video,” Johnson said. “I don’t know if they fully got prosecuted and had to pay anything, but the embarrassment of knowing that they were on camera, and we had that, stopped it.”
The ordinance will quadruple fines to $1,000 for a first offense. Each “large item” that gets dumped, such as a mattress or appliances, can result in an additional $1,500 fine.
The city said it has collected only $4,000 in fines for illegal dumping cases since 2018, but thinks with additional enforcement measures, it can bring in more money to make up for costs incurred to clean dumping sites.
Northeast Heights Neighborhood Association President James Roseboro said although illegal dumping hasn’t been as bad as past years in his neighborhood, using technology is a step in the right direction.
“Unless they penalize the people and make them get their attention, they can continue to do it,” he said.
Roseboro hopes that the changes will allow for better enforcement of the city code.
“They can pass all the codes all day long,” he said. “If they don’t enforce them, they’re useless.”
This story was originally published September 8, 2025 at 4:05 AM.