Mahatma Gandhi said, “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” Apparently, we value our trash more than the life of an animal.

Appropriately, the Honolulu City Council is considering a bill (Bill 24) to increase the fine for illegal dumping of trash — from $250 to $2,500. The state Legislature is considering bills (Senate Bill 2512, among them) to increase the fine for illegal dumping of animals — from $250 to $1,000. If the animal suffers as a result of the dumping, then it would be $2,000. If the purpose of the fine is to prevent dumping, then we should at least seek parity with the fines for dumping trash. Isn’t the life of an animal worth more than rubbish?

For Poi Dogs & Popoki (PDP), animal abandonment is a regular part of our lives. Cats trapped in colonies are brought to The Big Fix to be sterilized but are found to be microchipped to owners who live 10 to 20 miles away. Even state Sen. Mike Gabbard commented at a hearing that he was at the post office when a truck drove up and dumped out a bunch of cats. Sometimes they’re feral cats that someone just doesn’t want on their property, and sometimes they are the neighbor’s cats.

But our parks and beaches are usually the most popular dumping grounds. PDP was trapping at a beach park when a car drove up and dumped a cat that had a collar. We got a call about a kitten that PDP had sterilized in Ewa Beach — found at Malaekahana on the North Shore. We subsequently found out that the owner “gave” the kittens to an “auntie” who apparently dumped them at the beach park because “they would be fed.” And the cat colony caregivers at the University of Hawaii-Manoa will report the annual “cat dumping” by students who leave school in May — but leave their pets behind on campus.

It’s not just cats. PDP got a call about puppies that were dumped out of a car at Oneula Beach Park and another 10 left in a box on a dead end street in Waianae. Lucy and Linus are two mastiffs that we rescued who were sitting on the side of the road in Kalaeloa for three months, waiting for their owner to come back. More recently, a woman dumped a mommy dog and her puppy in Nanakuli: The mommy was tied to a fence and the puppy left to roam a busy road. Luckily, the property owner had security cameras and, using social media and a license plate, the woman was found and cited.

For the sake of these and such animals, it’s time to hold people accountable for their actions. Dumping animals, owned or feral, is illegal and inhumane. With greater penalties, we can deter people — but only if they know that “big brother” is watching. Next time someone is seen dumping an animal, get a picture of the license plate and report it to the police. And let’s at least penalize them more for dumping a life, than for dumping their trash.