TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - People are illegally dumping garbage at the Apalachicola Forest and officials say it's getting out of hand.
That's why they're behind an effort to clean it up this weekend.
The largest national forest in Florida is more than 570,000 acres.
The Apalachicola National Forest is a place people visit year-round, but it’s also become a place people dump their junk.
The USDA Forest Service says it’s seen all types of things here from newspapers, old appliances, food wrappers, bottles and cans, even wigs and, believe it or not, boats.
Those who live on the edge of the forest have been cleaning up as much as they can and the forest service helps every year.
In 2017, volunteers collected 36 tons of trash in Leon and Wakulla counties. That’s an all-time record. The forest service says it’s critical to curb illegal dumping now.
"It affects the whole aesthetic value. If you're trying to enjoy the environment of a national forest and you're seeing all this trash, it doesn't help that to come escape that from the inner city," said Bennett Basden, Recreation Technician of U.S. Forest Service. "Also, it can pollute the wetlands and maybe ponds or other environmental -- degradation to the environment, really."
The forest service says valuable resources are wasted and spending time cleaning up junk instead of working on other duties.
Around 100 volunteers help out at an annual clean up, to protect the environment and to discourage dumping for good.
