Fly-tipping
Fly-tipping is a term used to describe the illegal dumping of material on any land or deposit of waste on land that is not licensed to accept it. In practice this usually means waste dumped in lay-bys, farmland, back alleyways or items placed by litter or recycling bins.
Perpetrators of fly-tipping can vary from householders leaving black sacks out in the street away from their property to rogue traders that take large quantities of household and trade waste for cash in hand, only to dump it irresponsibly later.
The illegal deposit of waste is taken seriously by the Council and it aims to take legal action against flytippers, where there is sufficient evidence to do so. The Council will be prepared to consider enforcement action in cases where evidence is strong and you are prepared to provide a witness statement and appear in court as necessary. If you have witnessed an incident plase contact the Environmental Protection Team for advice and guidance on how to proceed with your complaint.
You can report fly-tipping online by clicking on Fly-tipping report form.
The penalty for those caught fly-tipping can be very high – up to 12 months imprisonment and/ or up to a £50,000 fine in the Magistrates Court, or five years and/ or an unlimited fine in the Crown Court.
The Council clears fly-tipping from the public highway, verges and lay-bys. If you report fly-tipping to us, we will try to get rid of dumped rubbish in two working days. If rubbish is dumped on private land, e.g. farmer's fields or domestic gardens then it is the owners responsibility to clear it.
Whether you are disposing of waste on a regular basis or once in a while, you have a duty of care which legally requires you to ensure your rubbish is disposed of properly.
The Environment Agency is also involved in flytipping and the illegal use of land for the storage or disposal of waste. Ordinarily incidents will only be dealt with by the Environment Agency if they are of a large scale (more than a tipper lorry load) or of a seriously polluting nature. If in doubt please contact the Council in the first instance.