An abandoned washing machine sits in the grass along a tank trail used for military vehicles to traverse the training area May 31, 2025, at Fort Cavazos, Texas. Illegal dumping not only violates Army Regulation 200-1, Environmental Protection and Enhancement, but also threatens sensitive ecosystems and adds to the environmental management challenges faced by installations across the United States.

FORT CAVAZOS, Texas — Illegal dumping has been a recurring and long-standing problem across the installation, both on the main cantonment and throughout the training areas.

The training areas especially have long been a hotbed for people to discard their unwanted furniture, appliances, brush, tires and other items.

Capt. William “Tommy” Marett, chief conservation law enforcement officer, Directorate of Emergency Services, and his team of four conservation law enforcement officers are tasked with patrolling the lands outside the main cantonment of Fort Cavazos.

“We have everything from cars to boats,” Marett said. “A couple of months ago, (Lt. Dustin Rodriguez, a conservation law enforcement officer, DES) had what looked like a dump truck go down North Nolan Road and just dumped it as he drove down the road.”

Unfortunately, the bulk of the cleanup in the training areas falls on Soldiers during the spring and fall cleanups. Twice a year, once in the spring and again in the fall, units are assigned areas on the installation and tasked with the cleanup of those areas.

“We get tons every year (of trash),” added Lt. Kevin Metress, another conservation law enforcement officer, DES. “Then someone goes through the trash to try to find out who it belongs to, so it is investigated.”

Those caught illegally dumping on the installation can face fines and possible loss of access to the installation.

Tim Erdman, engineering technician, Directorate of Public Works Operations and Management Division Services Branch, deals closely with a lot of the illegal dumping on the installation.

In April, Soldiers removed 45 tons of trash, 25 tons of metal, three tons of concertina wire and 116 tires from the training areas, Erdman said.

In December 2024, Soldiers cleaned up 34 tons of trash, 10 tons of metal and 125 tires from the training areas, he added.

“Everybody wants to bring their garbage into our remote areas and dump it,” Marett said. “So, we do a lot of investigating, and DPW puts a lot of money into cleaning up the illegal dumping.”

Illegal dumping poses a problem on the main cantonment as well, especially when items the landfill will not accept are placed into dumpsters, resulting in a stop order being placed on that dumpster.

“Then, Soldiers are not getting their trash emptied until the problem is fixed,” Erdman said. “It may not even be the unit’s fault this stuff is in there; it could just be somebody who works on the base and they come late at night and dump refrigerators and stuff in
the dumpster.”

Erdman oversees the landfill contract at Fort Cavazos, so he sees the larger scope of illegal dumping on post, both on the main cantonment and in the training areas.

A set of four tires lies abandoned along a tank trail May 31, 2025, at Fort Cavazos, Texas. Illegal dumping along training routes violates Army Regulation 200-1, which protects environmental resources critical for military readiness. Similar environmental concerns have been reported at installations across the United States.

The issue of discarded items extends beyond trash and tires.

The conservation officers also deal with people abandoning pets and wildlife on the installation.

“Ricky Raccoon gets into somebody’s chicken coop so they trap it, and they try to bring it on post, which they aren’t allowed to do either,” Metress said, as
an example.

They have found more exotic species as well.

“We’ve had peacocks, we’ve had aoudads — all kinds of things,” Marett said.

Some of the items dumped could create hazards, some of which could extend beyond the installation and create health or safety concerns.

Tree trimmings and brush are also dumped along the training area. Items like that are still considered a waste product.

“That’s waste; that’s still not legal,” Metress said, adding discarded brush only adds potential fuel to wildfires, which can put the community at-large in danger.

For every item being discarded on post, there is a site, an agency or a facility that can properly handle the material or item.

There are several resources on the installation for disposing of unwanted items.

There is a landfill on post for Fort Cavazos residents to dispose of large items that would not be placed in a bin with ususal household trash.

Residents first need to visit the Recycle Center for a voucher before heading to the landfill, Erdman advised. At the Recycle Center, all recyclable materials will be removed before the voucher is issued to proceed to the landfill.

The Fort Cavazos Recycle Center will accept cardboard; metal cans including steel, tin and aluminum; plastics No. 1 and 2, such as milk jugs, soap bottles, shampoo bottles and laundry detergent containers; and paper including magazines, newspaper, office paper and books.

The Classification Yard will accept hazardous materials that cannot be placed in regular trash bins. They will accept items like paint cans, pesticides, lithium batteries, light bulbs, used oil, computers, phones and aerosol cans.

Off-post residents should check with their local transfer station or landfill for disposal fees and any restrictions. Most communities around Fort Cavazos have recycling centers, landfills or transfer stations that serve those communities for items aside from normal trash.

“There’s a law that prohibits Fort Cavazos from accepting things into their landfill from off post,” Erdman said, adding the on-post site is not large enough to accommodate garbage from the surrounding area.

There are residency requirements or fees associated with most of the off-post sites, but the fees are a lot less than the $1,000 fines that can be incurred for illegal dumping.

Erdman said he recently used a transfer station to dispose of some trash following a remodeling project and the cost was not bad at all.

“I probably had a couple of tons of wood in the back of my truck, and it cost me around $20 to dump,” he said. “It’s definitely cheaper than a ticket.”

There are resources available for proper disposal of bulk trash, but Fort Cavazos continues to be laden with dumped materials.

Those who find illegal dump sites or witness illegal dumping can call 254-287-4001 to report it.

“I don’t know what it is about people abandoning livestock, garbage, vehicles and everything on Fort Cavazos,” Marett said, “but it is a problem, and each and every one is investigated.”

There are resources available on and off post for residents and businesses to properly and legally dispose of unwanted items. The information box above lists some of the contact information for entities both on Fort Cavazos and in surrounding communities to assist with locating the appropriate place to dispose of unwanted materials.