As £200,000 Removal Bill Is Dumped On Residents

Fly tipping cost Hounslow residents £210,973 last year but the council did not prosecute any of the perpetrators.

Fly tipping is the illegal dumping of waste which can vary in scale from a bin bag of rubbish to large quantities of waste dumped from trucks. It costs local authorities an estimated £100-£150 million every year to investigate and clear up and it falls to the taxpayer to foot the bill.

Whilst Hounslow Council considers fly tipping waste a serious offence and can impose fines of up to £20,000, those responsible for it continue to go unpunished.

When questioned a spokesperson for Hounslow said, "Fly-tipping is irresponsible and dangerous, and the council's community environment team work alongside, the Police, businesses and the public to tackle the problem and make the borough a better place for every resident.

"Over the last few months we have implemented new processes to deal with fly-tipping and in April we were successful in prosecuting a fly-tipper following good liaison with Hounslow Police. However, in order to successfully prosecute more of those who we suspect of fly-tipping, we rely on people who witness these events submitting a statement and giving evidence in court. We therefore encourage members of the public who report offences, to include information such as registration plates, dates, times and locations.

"We have also put in place measures to prevent fly-tipping, which our experience shows do work. As well as using CCTV as a deterrent, there are several locations across the borough where gates have been installed to limit access only to authorised people in order to prevent fly-tipping."

When fly tipping is reported to the council, Community Environment Officers visit the scene to establish if it is the responsibility of the Council to remove the rubbish, assess the quantity of rubbish and if the Council is responsible arrange for removal. The officer will also inspect the fly tipped rubbish to seek any evidence of origin of rubbish, with a view to prosecution of offenders.

Residents should note though that if the rubbish is deposited on private property it is the responsibility of the landowner to remove it although under certain circumstances the council may be prepared to assist with clearance.

June 26, 2007