Massive illegal dumping site in Northeast Philly has residents fed up

Residents in Philadelphia’s Tacony neighborhood say years of illegal dumping have turned a stretch of land behind their homes into what city leaders describe as one of the worst sites in the city.

The dumping area sits along a slope behind Pennway Street, where piles of garbage and construction debris have accumulated over time.

“It’s a landfill, but typically it starts from up there. You don’t have access, so people are just dumping stuff off the bridge,” one resident said.

Kyle Smith, who lives nearby, said the problem has persisted for years, with people discarding everything from household trash to construction materials and car parts.

“Looks like a house broke down. Like someone did demolition to a house and knocked it down,” Smith said. “But you don’t see no house structure, so you know it’s just a pile of trash. It probably stinks, rats and roaches and all that.”

According to city data, Philadelphia’s 311 system has received more than 244,000 reports of illegal dumping since 2014. So far this year, there have been about 4,200 reports. In 2026, the city has collected more than $900,000 in judgments related to illegal dumping cases.

“It’s very upsetting, especially for the people who work hard and pay their taxes,” another resident said.

City leaders say several agencies are now working together on a plan to clean up the site. The land is largely owned by PECO, and officials say the location presents serious challenges.

They cite the steep incline, high elevation and unstable ground as obstacles that make it difficult to bring in heavy equipment to remove the debris.

“We want to make sure residents understand that when you see someone illegally dumping, there’s a process in place. We do take action on it. We get information and do investigations to make sure we hold people accountable,” said Carlton Williams of the Office of Clean and Green Initiatives.

For neighbors like Smith, accountability is key as they wait to see progress on a long-standing problem.

This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC Philadelphia. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC Philadelphia journalist edited the article for publication.