Community

On the fly (tipping)

With fly-tipping on the rise, now’s the time to act to put a stop to illegally dumped waste. And with so many ways to dispose of unwanted items, there really is no excuse!

Fly-tipping and casual littering blights our beautiful city and the countryside beyond. It’s dirty, antisocial and can cause harm to our local environment. But with many convenient ways to get rid of our waste, this really shouldn’t be happening.

‘Sadly fly-tipping appears to be on the rise in Peterborough,’ explains Amy Nebel, Peterborough City Council’s Recycling Contracts Manager. ‘And where fly-tipping used to be confined to more rural areas, we’re increasingly seeing rubbish dumped within the city itself. Fly-tipped waste is costly to deal with and puts a strain on the council’s budget.

The council’s money is better spent on frontline services like social care, rather than clearing up other people’s mess.’ Part of the solution to fly-tipping lies in educating residents about the risks of unlicensed waste collectors, who will offer to dispose of your waste for a fraction of the cost – only to illegally dump it around the corner. ‘The council’s enforcement team is doing a lot of work in this area.

Giving your waste to a stranger for £10 may seem like a bargain, but if they are not a licensed waste carrier then you could also be prosecuted for failing to ensure the waste is disposed of legally and correctly,’ says Amy. ‘You have a duty of care to ensure your waste is disposed of responsibly. If it ends up being illegally dumped it may be traced back to you, and it’s you that would then be held responsible.’ Fines for flytipping are regularly issued by the council, with the worst cases attracting penalties of up to £50,000.

Amy advises checking whether anyone collecting and disposing of your waste is registered to do so by asking to see their waste carriers licence or check online at www.gov.uk

Fly-tipping: The facts
● Last year their were just over a million incidents of fly-tipping across England, a 7% rise on the previous. ● Last year their were just over a million Two-thirds of fly-tips involved household waste. ● Last year their were just over a million Fly-tipping cost local authorities £58m to clear up.

Follow the SCRAP code
● SUSPECT. Beware of rogue waste carriers. ● CHECK. Ask for waste carrier registration details. You can verify them online (www.gov.uk/guidance/access-the-publicregister-for-environmental-information) or by calling 03708 506506. ● REFUSE unsolicited offers to have rubbish removed. Always carry out your own research and choose who you wish to approach. ● ASK QUESTIONS. Ask what is going to happen to your rubbish and seek evidence that it is going to be disposed of appropriately. ● PAPERWORK. Make sure you get a proper receipt containing the written information for your waste (a ‘Duty of care: waste transfer note’). This should include what has been removed and where it will be going. Make sure the company or tradesman’s details are included.

Find out more
● Learn more about fly-tipping and littering – and how to report it by heading to www.peterborough.gov.uk/residents/saferpeterborough and clicking on the ‘Fly-tipping and littering’ option. You can also report fly-tipping and other nuisances such as graffiti using the My Peterborough app, available to download for free from the Apple and Google Play Stores.

Images: www.freepik.com/free-photo/old-things-sitting-outside-tied-up_1278044

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