Doug McCallum promising war on illegal dumpers if elected
Published 10:30 am Tuesday, September 8, 2026
Former Surrey mayor Doug McCallum vows to wage war on illegal dumpers if he and his Safe Surrey Coalition council candidates are elected on October 17.
In a press release issued September 8 McCallum says if he’s elected he’ll bring forward a motion at the inaugural meeting to impose the “toughest” illegal dumping rules in B.C. that would see any company that’s caught doing this within city limits lose its business licence and be banned from operating in Surrey for 10 years.
Moreover, anyone caught illegal dumping would be hit with a solid $10,000 fine “every single time,” not just up to $10,000.
“And to catch them, the City will install cameras in known dumping hotspots and use drone technology to track down the people responsible.”
“Surrey is our home, not a landfill,” McCallum said. “The people who treat this city like a dump are going to find out it is the most expensive mistake they ever made.”
The SSC press release notes that illegal dumping is a city-wide problem in alleyways, forests and rural roads with construction demolition, mattresses and renovation debris showing up on the same street corners week after week.
And this continues despite City of Surrey programs that offer free junk disposal like large-item pick up (up to six large items per year, per household), and dropping off up to 100 kilograms of trash.
“There is no excuse. The City will pick up your old couch for free, and people are still dumping their junk next to where children play,” McCallum noted. “That tells you everything you need to know.
McCallum says illegal dumping spots are well known. “The same corners, the same back lanes, over and over. So we are going to be waiting for them,” he says. “Cameras go into the known hotspots, and our drone program will help track the trucks and the companies behind this. You want to dump in Surrey at 2 in the morning and think nobody saw you? Wrong. We saw you. And now you’ll pay for it.”
Councillor Doug Elford, who lives in Newton and is seeking re-election, says his neighbours live with the blight of illegal dumping “every single day.
“There are couches on the boulevard, construction waste in the back lanes, and garbage dumped beside the bus stops where seniors wait every morning,” he says. Cameras and drones mean dumpers will “finally get caught” and a 10-year ban “is not a slap on the wrist. It is a reason to never dump in this city again.”