More than 53 tons of debris were removed from an illegal dumpsite in Tioga State Forest, Tioga County, on June 27, 2002.
The Route 6 pulloff, located between Gaines and Galeton, was transformed from dumpsite to its natural state, enhancing Pine Creek, located below the slope.
PA CleanWays, DCNR's cleanup partner, contracted with E. Frome Enterprises in Gaines in addition to Tioga State Forest staff to remove 52.13 tons of concrete and asphalt and 1.4 tons of trash, appliances, and 19 tires from the site.
Phoenix Resources, Waste Management, donated the disposal cost of all concrete and asphalt. The trash was taken to Superior Disposal in Wellsboro.
The contractor worked with ten DCNR employees, including heavy equipment operators, and a road and maintenance crew. DCNR employees used a Gradall to load the concrete slabs into dump trucks. They also used the machine to scoop large piles of asphalt, hand pick the smaller trash and wrestle the appliances up the steep slope. Because of the heavy-lifting equipment required, volunteers were not part of the Tioga State Forest effort.
DCNR encourages Tioga County residents with disposal and recycling questions to contact the County Recycling Coordinator Lori Robinson at 570-297-4177 at
or by e-mail.
Tioga State Forest consists of 160,000 acres in Bradford and Tioga Counties. It is named for an Indian word meaning the meeting of two rivers, which is the name of a tribe of Seneca Indians who once inhabited the area.
Birch stills were once operated in the forest. During the 1940s, they were used to process bark from birch trees to produce birch oil. A remnant of the industry is still located at Morris, but has not been operated since 1972.
Learn about other illegal dump sites in state forests and parks.
This page last updated August 14, 2002.
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