WOOLWICH — Michelle Shannon had 24 decrepit, rusty barrels of hazardous waste dumped at the edge of her sugar bush last week.

It was a good thing her son, John-Wesley Weber, happened upon the scene Wednesday night as he walked the dog on their large family farm. He went back to the house to tell his mother.

"I could hardly believe what I saw," Shannon said. "I felt sick that someone would do that not only to me but also to the environment."

She wanted the toxic stuff gone, off her property, away from her family's livelihood, the wild elderberries and asparagus and the little frogs that pitter-patter in the mud.

Shannon called the police first and they told her to contact the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, Township of Woolwich and the Region of Waterloo.

But no one, from the township to the region and the ministry, offered her any help to remove it.

"I just couldn't sleep Wednesday night," Shannon said. "Why on earth would someone even for a second think this was OK?"

She spent Thursday morning with her cellphone attached to her right ear. Contractors and engineers came and went through the old farmhouse built in the late 1800s.

Engineers inspected the soil. Contractors who specialize in hazardous waste removal looked at the rusty old 55-gallon barrels and quoted prices for removal: between $10,000 and $12,000.

Shannon thought: no wonder it was illegally dumped here by someone who didn't want to pay for their own mess.

She doesn't think it is fair for her to foot the bill on her own.

Because the barrels were dumped on private property, the Region of Waterloo is not responsible for removing the waste or helping her financially.

Cari Howard, a project manager with the region's waste management programs, said in an email that waste management picks up only residential, household waste.

When items are dumped onto private property it becomes the responsibility of the property owner to dispose of it.

"It is an unfortunate situation for any homeowner," she said. "But it is no different than any other property damage, such as graffiti."

Kate Jordan, a spokesperson for the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, said in an email that they will closely monitor the situation until the barrels have been cleared.

But the ministry's job is to assess any potential harm to the environment, not pick up the $10,000 bill. They can order Shannon to have the hazardous items removed by a certain date.

Luckily there was very little spillage. Shannon was able to move the barrels and place them onto tarp. They are marked in chalk and claim to be filled with oily water, paint and diesel.

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I know we're never going to find them (the dumpers)," she said.

Shannon is worried this type of unfortunate situation will happen more frequently with the looming garbage collection changes coming to the region in 2017.

"Garbage pickup changes will become a bigger issue for us in the country with illegal dumping," she said.

"Chances are they (the dumpers) have done this somewhere else and they will do it again," she said.

"It seems very calculated."

The region sent staff to her property on Friday to "ensure steps are taken to protect the water," Howard said. But the only time the region picks up illegal dumps is when it occurs on regional roads.

Small amounts of household-generated hazardous waste such as paint, pool chemicals or motor oil to a limit of 25 litres can be dropped off free at the Erb street landfill.

But Shannon has much more than that to dispose of safely.

She hired an environmental engineer to guide her through the frustrating process that has consumed the better part of a week. So far they know a lot of soil will need to be excavated once the barrels are gone.

She said she left messages with her local MPP Michael Harris and MP Harold Albrecht because she wants something to be done.

"I've spoken to a lot of people, and everybody has been sympathetic but nobody wants to take responsibility," she said.

"This isn't just one or two or three barrels, this is 24."