Hundreds of Tires Dumped Near Philly Airport, Officials Say

(TACONY CREEK PARK (NEAR NORTHEAST PHILADELPHIA AIRPORT)) City crews and volunteers are racing to clear one of Philadelphia’s largest illegal tire dumps after more than 4,000 tires were found in a wooded stretch of Tacony Creek Park close to the Northeast Philadelphia Airport. Officials say they learned about the dumping shortly after Thanksgiving 2024, and by early 2025 the scale was clear enough to force an urgent response.

The park’s primary dump site sits near Adams Avenue, not far from airport facilities, with tire piles stretching across hidden paths and slopes.

April 5, 2025 Cleanup: Scale and Partners

On April 5, 2025, during the annual Philly Spring Cleanup, more than 100 volunteers joined forces with multiple city agencies to remove the tires. Workers from:

• Parks and Recreation
• Office of Clean and Green Initiatives
• Water Department
• SEPTA

helped load and haul the debris. Streets near the park were closed while contracted haulers managed disposal.

City leaders called the operation one of the largest tire cleanups in recent memory, reflecting how deep the problem runs across these woods.

“This was a major, coordinated effort — city crews, volunteers, and contracted haulers working together to remove thousands of tires from ecologically sensitive land.”

Environmental and Community Risks

Tacony Creek Park is an important ecological area, home to more than 100 species of birds and animals. Tire piles near the creek pose several risks:

• Water quality hazards: Rain can wash chemicals from tires into the stream.
• Wildlife impacts: Tires disrupt habitat and can leach contaminants.
• Public health concerns: Tires trap standing water, creating mosquito breeding sites and other pest risks.

Residents who walk, bike, or fish near the creek have watched truck after truck use secluded access points to dump loads that should have gone to recycling.

Cost to the City and Broader Context

The city has been blunt about the cost of dealing with trash and blight.

• Philadelphia spends about $48 million each year addressing trash and blight.
• City crews remove roughly 250,000 tires per year from streets, alleys, and lots.
• Complaint data show Philadelphia’s dumping rate remains higher than in many other large U.S. cities, though overall complaints fell by 4% from the previous year.

Even with that drop, the tire piles at Tacony Creek Park and near the Northeast Philadelphia Airport show how fast dumpers can undo progress.

City Response and Enforcement Steps

To push back, city officials have taken multiple actions:

• Installed more than 300 surveillance cameras, with 100 more planned.
• Secured more than $3.5 million in judgments against violators.
• Created a new Cleaner and Greener Enforcement Unit under the District Attorney’s Office to prosecute cases more aggressively.
• Warned that jail time may now be possible for repeat or large-scale dumpers, not just fines.

Officials say the goal is clear: make it too costly and risky to use parkland as a free disposal site.

Investigations and Tactics

Investigators suspect a rogue tire hauling operation is behind the worst piles at Tacony Creek Park. Key findings and tactics include:

• Suspected method: dodging recycling fees by repeatedly slipping into the park.
• Reported access: perpetrators may have cut and replaced a SEPTA gate lock, allowing repeated access without immediate detection.
• Tracing difficulty: most tire casings are unmarked, and the park’s size creates many hiding spots.
• Public assistance: enforcement teams have asked residents to report late-night or pre-dawn truck activity near park gates and secluded access roads.

Physical Security and Patrols

City departments are coordinating with transit and water agencies to secure entry points and deter dumpers:

• Fresh locks on gates
• Improved lighting in targeted areas
• Camera placement along corridors used by dump trucks
• Mapping of dump patterns to schedule enforcement patrols

Officials note the challenge: the park’s woods and nearby airport industrial edges create quiet zones connected to quick highway links — conditions dumpers seek.

Community Involvement

Residents and local groups have stepped in to help:

• Organizations such as United by Blue and the Tookany/Tacony-Frankford Watershed Partnership are organizing cleanups and educational efforts.
• Volunteers help spot routes and assist city staff in logging findings.
• Volunteers report heavy work but strong morale, noting each load removed restores space for families.

Police and city inspectors ask residents not to confront dumpers directly, but to record details like truck plates, company names on doors, and the exact entry point used.

How to Report and Help

The city urges people to report illegal dumping through its complaint system so crews and inspectors can respond faster. Ways to report:

• File reports online via the City’s illegal dumping page: https://www.phila.gov/services/trash-recycling-city-upkeep/report-littering-or-illegal-dumping/
• Use the hotline or contact neighborhood groups working with Parks and Recreation

Each report helps:

• Target camera placement
• Guide patrols
• Speed cleanups

Officials encourage residents to provide details such as time, location, vehicle descriptions, and license plates — a single plate number can help tie a truck to a pile.

Cleanup Logistics and Long-Term Strategy

During the April 5 cleanup:

• Crews used heavy equipment to load tires onto trucks.
• Volunteers rolled and stacked tires from steep slopes.
• Contracted haulers handled disposal because many piles were soaked and mud-packed, increasing weight and cost.

City planners say the long-term fix depends on two tracks:

1. Steady enforcement that raises penalties and pursues cases aggressively.
2. Steady cleanup and activation of park spaces so they stay busy and less attractive for dumping.

When parks stay active and well-maintained, dumping tends to drop.

Legal and Regulatory Measures

Authorities are clear: dumping is a criminal act. Consequences include:

• Fines
• Civil judgments
• Possible jail time in severe cases

The DA-led unit aims to:

• Build stronger cases
• Tie loads to specific offenders
• Follow through on judgments

The city also urges tire shops and haulers to use licensed recyclers and keep records. Inspectors continue watching known problem corridors and checking repeat complaints.

Ongoing Challenge and Outlook

This fight will not end with a single sweep. Key points:

• Philadelphia removes hundreds of thousands of tires each year.
• A single illegal operation can erase months of work in a weekend.
• The April 5 push demonstrated both community capacity and the scale of the problem.
• More cameras, targeted patrols, and faster case filing may help tip the balance.

Community leaders emphasize that families near Tacony Creek Park deserve safe, clean spaces. Park health protects the creek and larger waterways; every tire hauled out reduces risk to water and wildlife. For residents near the Northeast Philadelphia Airport, cleaner corridors mean better roadsides and fewer hazards.

As cross-agency efforts continue, officials are focused on basics: secure gates, watch trouble spots, act on reports, and keep hauling.

If you see dumping in progress: move to a safe place, call police, then submit a report with time, location, and vehicle details. Public tips can break cases — a single plate number can tie a truck to a pile. The message from City Hall: report it, and the city will pursue it.

For broader policy context on how enforcement units work with prosecutors and community groups, readers often refer to analysis by VisaVerge.com. City officials remain focused on on-the-ground steps to reduce illegal dumping and restore parkland for community use.