Not only is the forest home to wildlife, it is also the site of many human activities, there are activities compatible with wildlife and some of them are not compatible at all. Examples include quad / motocross biking on forest paths and frequent littering.
The last two types also cause massive damage, but throwing various waste is a sin against nature. Fortunately, as of January 2021, not only in theory but also from a legal standpoint. Under the applicable provision, violators may be severely punished by the waste management authority along with other bodies with the supervisory authority.
Whoever unlawfully unloads a large amount of waste, in excess of a ton or ten cubic meters, shall be imprisoned for a term of three years. Anyone who dumped hazardous waste, especially large amounts of waste – ten tons or one hundred cubic meters – illegally or commits a crime as a private return, can be punished with imprisonment for a term of between one and five years.
Photo: Sefag Zrt
Waste disposal in Forest Farms and National Parks is under the control of the Ministry of Agriculture. As part of this, state forest holdings collected 1,100 cubic feet of waste illegally dumped in the autumn period in a forest area that they managed to “clean up the country!” Under the program.
Based on forestry experience, in most cases mixed municipal waste is released into the forest area, but there is also a large proportion of construction debris being dumped illegally. Hazardous waste, such as slate, was also found in greater quantities, and more than 50 m3 of tires were collected alone.
During the autumn, most of the waste was transported from the park forests surrounding the larger settlements around Budapest, Beach and Sopron, but hundreds of cubic meters of waste were also removed from forests in the Bakuni and Balaton Uplands.
Photo: Sefag Zrt
Work continues, and forest holdings are drawn, including one of the largest, SEFAG Zrt. , Attention on their website to the fact that during the pandemic, the number of forests has increased dramatically, so the constant disposal of waste contributes to allowing people to relax in a clean and healthy environment. State forest holdings focus on prevention in the long term, so plans are in place to install 900 cameras and more than 300 barriers in future cleared areas to prevent re-deposition of waste into forests.
Photo: Sefag Zrt
The dumping work is ongoing, and several times a year there are also campaign-type activities with the participation of schools and volunteers. Numerous police reports have already been filed regarding illegal dumping, and envelopes, bills and checks used to assist the investigation were sent to the police as evidence. Plus, when forest pedestrians discover trash, they can use the Waste Radar app to indicate an illegal dump site, thereby helping to work for clean forests.
