TARP or TICKET for Victorians Beginning September 1st

Victoria, spread the word, not your trash.

If you're hauling loose material like trash, soil, or product in the bed of your truck or trailer, you'll need to tarp your load during the transport or you could be fined $500 bucks.

As citizens who do their best to support their community and believe in keeping the city clean, it was horrifying to have been notified by phone a few years ago after one of our bags of trash we were hauling fell off our flatbed. It was an unexpected call, hearing our trash had been found by a law enforcement officer in our community. He found it, opened the bag, and identified us by a discarded envelope we had thrown away.

It was embarrassing but also a bit harrowing to note anyone could have gotten our address and information from our trash. Thankfully it was a law enforcement officer! We immediately went back to pick it up and have since tarped our trash when hauling it from that day forward.

Unfortunately, this is a more common occurrence than we know and the City of Victoria wants to help the community keep our city clean. This is why Victorians can now be fined for un-tarped hauls. It's an effort to keep Victoria's roadways free of litter.

In the days to come, the City of Victoria Environmental Services will launch a campaign, to educate residents that starting September 1st, 2020,' Anyone transporting garbage in a truck or trailer MUST secure their trash using a TARP or they could face fines or citation.'

“We want people to be aware trash bags can easily be caught by the wind and blown out of a vehicle,” said Tiffany Koenig, City of Victoria Environmental and Beautification coordinator. “This is just one way for people to support beautification and take pride in their community."

Additionally, if anyone is disposing of an uncovered load at the Victoria City Landfill they will be charged an extra $30 as well.

You can read the complete release on the Victoriatx.org webpage here.

If you want more information, please contact Environmental Services at 361.485.3230.

Let's all work together to keep Victoria beautiful. Tarp It or Ticket.