Fenland District Council has used a £2,400 grant from police and crime commissioner Darryl Preston to undertake a clean-up operation of an embankment and layby plagued by almost forty incidents of fly tipping in nine months.
“I am pleased to see Fenland District Council putting money from my Safer Communities Fund into cleaning up waste and installing preventative measures to stop the blight of fly-tipping from happening again,” he said.
“I want to be clear, fly tipping is a crime and completely unacceptable in our communities.
“It can have a significant environmental and health impact, as well as a financial burden on law-abiding citizens and our public services.”
Fenland District Council cleared twenty-two tonnes of waste from Coldham Bank, Friday Bridge, near Wisbech – the equivalent of almost two full district council refuse vehicles.
“The clean-up and deterrent measures were possible thanks to support from Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Cambridgeshire County Council and landowners,” said a council spokesperson.
“Most of the waste was historic and, in a ditch, running along the boundary of the highway verge and a farmer’s field but was being repeatedly added to.”
Cllr Peter Murphy, Fenland District Council’s portfolio holder for the environment, said: “This is a fantastic piece of work to clear an area that had become an entrenched grot spot and site of environmental abuse.
“Now the site has been cleared, should anyone choose to fly-tip there again our enforcement officers will have much more opportunity to find the evidence they need to trace it back and prosecute.
“We hope it doesn’t come to that and that now this site is clear there’ll be a new respect for the area and residents and wildlife can be free of this nuisance and pollution.”
Between January and September last year there were thirty-eight separate incidents of items being dumped at the site, including both commercial and household waste.
Money from the Safer Communities Fund funded the removal of all waste and the purchase of new signage to highlight the consequences of fly-tipping.
The council spokesperson added that partnership working with the local highways authority Cambridgeshire County Council and landowners “allowed the construction of a soil and concrete bund to prevent any future dumped waste escaping into the water course and make it more difficult for items to be unloaded at the site”.
The spokesperson added: “Fly-tipping is a criminal offence that carries an unlimited fine and potential prison sentence.
“Last year, Fenland District Council dealt with 914 separate incidents of fly-tipping.
“Most incidents are dealt with within 48 hours.”
Householders who pay anyone to dump waste for them have a responsibility to check the person is registered with the Environment Agency or they could face a fixed penalty of £400. Checks can be made at https://environment.data.gov.uk/public-register/view/search-waste-carriers-brokers Or contact the Environment Agency on 03708 506506 for a free instant waste carrier validation check.
Fenland District Council runs a bulky waste service where household items can be collected from your home for a fixed fee. Visit: www.fenland.gov.uk/bulkywaste
And residents can use Cambridgeshire Household Recycling Centres free.
Report fly-tipping in Fenland via www.fenland.gov.uk/flytipping
