The Department of Natural Resources is increasingly encountering people who stockpile tires rather than pay to have them properly disposed of. (Photo courtesy of Iowa DNR)
Two Davenport men who earned money last year by hauling and storing thousands of junk tires without permits have been ordered to pay a total of $90,000 for the violations and to remove the tires from the property they rent, according to court documents.
Timothy James Peters and David Omar Mercado were fined $10,000 apiece early this year by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and ordered to dispose of the tires, but they failed to pay the fines and didn’t remove the tires.
In June, Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller sued them and sought a court order that would require the men to comply with the DNR order. Peters and Mercado failed to file responses to the lawsuit, court records show. A judge ruled this week that the men and their defunct company — TNT Disposal LLC — had defaulted and the court granted Miller’s requests. The men must:
Peters and Mercado could not be reached to comment for this article.
The DNR’s most recent investigation into the case began in September 2021, when someone complained to the DNR about the growing collection of tires at their property.
“The individuals were reportedly being paid by local businesses to pick up waste tires, thereby undercutting legitimate licensed waste tire haulers and recyclers,” according to a January DNR order. Peters and Mercado were charging $1 or $2 per tire — less than half of the going rate.
DNR officers went to the property in the 14100 block of 113th Avenue, Davenport, and found two semitrailer truck cargo boxes full of tires and a pile of tires in the back yard, DNR records show.
The year prior, the city of Davenport removed up to 16,000 tires that Peters’ brother had accumulated at an in-town acreage. A judge’s order that approved the removal said the brother would be responsible for reimbursing the city’s costs, which were estimated to be up to $100,000.
by Jared Strong, Iowa Capital Dispatch September 1, 2022
by Jared Strong, Iowa Capital Dispatch September 1, 2022
Two Davenport men who earned money last year by hauling and storing thousands of junk tires without permits have been ordered to pay a total of $90,000 for the violations and to remove the tires from the property they rent, according to court documents.
Timothy James Peters and David Omar Mercado were fined $10,000 apiece early this year by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and ordered to dispose of the tires, but they failed to pay the fines and didn’t remove the tires.
In June, Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller sued them and sought a court order that would require the men to comply with the DNR order. Peters and Mercado failed to file responses to the lawsuit, court records show. A judge ruled this week that the men and their defunct company — TNT Disposal LLC — had defaulted and the court granted Miller’s requests. The men must:
Peters and Mercado could not be reached to comment for this article.
The DNR’s most recent investigation into the case began in September 2021, when someone complained to the DNR about the growing collection of tires at their property.
“The individuals were reportedly being paid by local businesses to pick up waste tires, thereby undercutting legitimate licensed waste tire haulers and recyclers,” according to a January DNR order. Peters and Mercado were charging $1 or $2 per tire — less than half of the going rate.
DNR officers went to the property in the 14100 block of 113th Avenue, Davenport, and found two semitrailer truck cargo boxes full of tires and a pile of tires in the back yard, DNR records show.
The year prior, the city of Davenport removed up to 16,000 tires that Peters’ brother had accumulated at an in-town acreage. A judge’s order that approved the removal said the brother would be responsible for reimbursing the city’s costs, which were estimated to be up to $100,000.
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Senior reporter Jared Strong has written about Iowans and the important issues that affect them for more than 15 years, previously for the Carroll Times Herald and the Des Moines Register. His investigative work exposing police misconduct has notched several state and national awards. He is a longtime trustee of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, which fights for open records and open government. He is a lifelong Iowan and has lived mostly in rural western parts of the state.
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Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site.