Open Dumping Initiative
About the AGO > Service Divisions > Environmental Enforcement > Help us crack down on open dumping

Applications being accepted for grants to clean up, protect against illegal dump sites

Through Feb. 28, 2025, the Environmental Enforcement Section of Attorney General Dave Yost’s office is accepting applications for grants to help communities throughout Ohio remedy illegal dump sites containing solid waste and/or construction and demolition debris.

County and local governments are eligible to apply for the grant funds, which also cover preventative actions to deter future dumping.

Additional information and a grant application can be found here.

If you have any questions, please email StopEnvironmentalCrimes@OhioAGO.gov.

Help us crack down on open dumping

Illegal dumping of solid wastes is an unsightly and unhealthy problem in neighborhoods across Ohio, and Attorney General Yost’s Environmental Enforcement Section (EES) is committed to cracking down on it.

Coinciding with Earth Day 2023, we launched “Shine a Light on Dumpers,” a multipronged initiative to expose criminals who use their backyard – or, even more egregious, someone else’s property – as a massive garbage can.

Shine a Light on Dumpers consists of training, education, legal guidance, technical equipment, and investigative and prosecutorial assistance. Our experts provide these resources to local law enforcement agencies so that those agencies (with help from the public) are equipped to put a stop to illegal dumping in their communities.