Springdale strikes against dumping in Agan Park.

The council on Tuesday asked the borough’s interim manager, Jason Dailey, to develop a no-dumping policy at the Springdale Township park. They also urged him to distribute that policy to city staff and Agan Park representatives.

Agan Park is located along Riddle Run Road in Springdale Township but is jointly operated by Springdale and Cheswick boroughs.

“It seems like people are using it as a dumping ground,” Springdale Councilwoman Toni Robbins said. “We are drafting a policy to ban people from dumping and hold them accountable for it.”

She said people usually dump items at the bottom of the park, but now there are more incidents of people throwing things at the top of the park. Some of those items include what Robbins called “industrial blue drums,” about 50 light bulbs, paper and other junk.

Kevin Wilhelm, Springdale’s fire chief, told the council they could look at a number listed on the industrial drums to try to link it back to its owner.

The dumping situation at Agan Park is the worst it’s ever been, Robbins said, and has prompted officials to lock the gate to the park during the off-season, which runs from now until early spring.

There have also been reports of burns in the park, Councilman Joe Kern said.

“It’s like the Wild West up there,” Kern said.

Allegheny Valley Regional Police have opened one or two cases in response to the dumping, Robbins said.

In response to questions from other council members, Robbins said the proposed policy would not target city employees who dump things like dirt in the park, but rather people who have dumped things they shouldn’t be.

She said it likely won’t be until 2025 when the policy is in place.

“We can take our time and work on a policy that both the Cheswick, Springdale and Agan Park Joint Recreation Committees can look at and get approval from everybody,” she said.

At Robbins’ discretion, people who dump things in Agan Park would pay a hefty fine for this type of dumping.

“We will enforce no dumping in the park,” she said, “and people caught doing it will be held accountable.”