TUESDAY, September 29, 2026|
Photo – Medicine Bow sign – Bigfoot99 file photo
The town of Medicine Bow has adopted new rules aimed at preventing illegal dumping.
In May 2025, Medicine Bow Public Works Director Brian Lashley announced that people were throwing prohibited items, such as furniture, into the town’s burn pit, forcing town employees to manually clear the debris. Residents are only permitted to dispose of small brush items in the burn pit.
The governing body agreed to place cameras at the burn pit to identify the individuals responsible for disposing of prohibited items. To help prosecute the offending parties, the town created Ordinance 3‑2026, which establishes regulations and enforcement against illegal solid‑waste disposal.
Clerk and Treasurer Karen Heath read the ordinance during the September 14th Medicine Bow Town Council Meeting.
In addition, all hazardous waste must be disposed of according to Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality requirements.
Individuals found in breach of the town’s new garbage‑disposal ordinance will be subject to escalating fines of $250, $500, and $750 for each violation.
Continuing to read the ordinance, Clerk Heath said the town will try to recover the cost of cleaning up illegal dumping, even to the point of placing a lien on the offender’s property.
Like all changes to municipal law, Ordinance 3‑2026 was required to be read and passed three times during three separate public hearings. The Medicine Bow Town Council voted to adopt the ordinance for the first time on July 13th, again on August 10th, and for the third and final time on September 14th, codifying the measure into law.
