Dive Brief:

• The Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation is now being ordered to address tens of thousands of outstanding requests to clean up illegally dumped trash, following a Los Angeles Times analysis published last month. 
• Mayor Eric Garcetti launched an internal investigation in which the sanitation agency visited roughly 6,000 locations where dumping was reported, finding that half were still dirty. The investigation also found that 84% of roughly 8,000 tons of trash removed in FY15 — which ended in July — came from City Council districts in central, northeast and south L.A. 
• Mayor Garcetti is now instructing sanitation officials to provide an explanation for disparities in service between neighborhoods, and is also asking sanitation officials to work with the city's Information Technology Agency to improve its service tracking system. 

Dive Insight:

This map created by the Los Angeles Times shows areas of the city that have pending cleanup requests as of mid-August. The Times reports that residents in northeast, central, and south L.A. receive the worse service for illegal dumping pickup. 

"Fair and timely delivery of basic services — for all Angelenos — is how we measure our success," Garcetti said in a statement. "Even the suggestion of inequity needs to be addressed swiftly."

Although Garcetti has taken action on the issue and the response rate is improving, the city still has a long way to go to reach equality in trash services. Other areas of the country, such as Houston and Little Rock, AR, are dealing with similar service issues.