Fly tipping – the unauthorised dumping of waste – is an ever increasing problem across the UK; councils are left with the responsibility of cleaning up the mess.
Councils are proving their zero tolerance stance on fly- tipping offences says the Local Government‘s Association’s Environment board in response to Defra fly capturing database figures.
Some councils are dealing with 20,000 incidents a year, with someone flytipping every 35 seconds in England and Wales. The fly capture database has been available since spring 2004 and is open to councils, Environment Agency, DVLA, police and fire services. It provides shared intelligence of fly tipping instances and enforcement action.
The LGA reports that it was instrumental in lobbying for and winning the new powers for tackling fly tipping as contained in the Cleaner Neighbourhoods Act. These measures, it is claimed, act as a deterrent for individuals, businesses and criminal gangs that are responsible for fly-tipping offences. The Environment Agency is now concentrating their resources towards the larger and more serious types of waste dumping whilst there are clear arrangements for local councils to build their capacity to investigate and enforce against waste and fly-tipping.
What they say
Cllr David Sparks, chair of the LGA’s Environment board said: “Fly-tipping is a huge problem for councils and residents alike. It is essentially a health hazard as well as blight on our environmental landscape. These figures are a testament to the fact that councils are cracking down on those that damage the environment by contributing to the national fly tipping strategy and by submitting their data for the fly capturing database. We can only but reap from the benefits of stronger legislation and shared intelligence on this issue as prevention will result in a better quality of life for our communities with councils utilising their powers to tackle offender through a maximum penalty of £50,000 and five years imprisonment as fly-tipping is a criminal offence.”
Background
Fly capture is a national database developed by Defra and the environment agency into which the vast majority of local authorities have been regularly submitting data for the past year. It contains summary information on incidents dealt with, action taken and a vehicle registration hot list that encourages joint working between agencies.
Top five most frequently fly-tipped items
Household rubbish
White goods, such as fridges, freezers and kitchens
Constructions, demolition and home improvement rubbish
Garden rubbish
Rubbish from businesses
Fly tipper top dumping spots
Roadside
Councils land, such as housing estates, car parks, parks and open spaces
Back alleyways
Country paths
Private sites inc private and industrial sites
Examples
Kent has a county wide partnership involving all districts, the county, police, local environment agency, customs and the DVLA. This partnership conducts operations, and shares information and resources.
Leeds City council has developed teams that operate across departments to take an informed approach to tackling environmental crime.
Lancashire Fly-tipping forum includes local businesses, landowners and the Environment Agency. Arranging training shared resources and develops joint working arrangements and enforcement policies.
