23-July-2020

Defra has today (24) published its latest statistics for fly-tipping in England after a BBC Panorama investigation revealed an incident where a licensed waste carrier was involved in fly-tipping.

According to the latest statistics for fly-tipping in England which covers 2019/20, over 75,000 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) were issued for fly-tipping – an increase of 32% since 2016 when councils were given the power to issue fly-tipping FPNs. Prosecutions have also more than doubled over the same period, with total court fines last year totalling nearly £1.2 million.

Councils in England dealt with 976,000 fly-tipping incidents, an increase of 2% from the 957,000 reported in 2018/19, with the most common size category being equivalent to a ‘small van load’ of waste (34% of total incidents), followed by the equivalent of a ‘car boot or less’ (28%).

Environment Minister Rebecca Pow said: “Fly-tipping is completely unacceptable, and these cynical offenders need to know that councils are taking increasing action and that they face on-the-spot fines of £400 or up to five years in prison if convicted in court.

“Over 75,000 fixed penalty notices were issued in 2019/20 – an increase of 32% since 2016 – and prosecutions have more than doubled over the same period, with total court fines last year totalling nearly £1.2 million.

“We are committed to tackling waste crime even further, but there is more that we must all do. Everyone has a legal duty of care when handling waste, and all householders and businesses must ensure that they pass their waste to licensed carriers, as failure to do so could result in a £400 fine.”

Pat Jennings, CIWM’s Policy, Knowledge and External Affairs Director, said: “These figures demonstrate that the fight against fly-tipping, both small and large incidents, must remain a priority. Tougher financial penalties and sentences are part of the answer and so is work currently underway to reform the regulatory regime for waste carriers, brokers and dealers.

“We know that this is an area where illegal waste activity occurs and CIWM and other stakeholders are feeding into the Government’s thinking as it shapes the reforms. The latest figures also highlight that there needs to be a renewed focus on driving up awareness among householders of their Duty of Care. With two thirds of incidents involving household waste, it is clear that message is not well understood.”

Head of Regulation at the Environmental Services Association (ESA), Sam Corp, said: “Today’s figures show that fly-tipping is unfortunately on the rise, with nearly a million incidents in England alone during 2019/29.

“Fly-tipping is one of the most common and pervasive environmental crimes, which affects not just the environment, but also has social, economic and health implications too.

“Regulating against this behaviour and prosecuting offenders is challenging and, coupled with relatively low penalties even when an offender is convicted, these factors unfortunately make fly-tipping a low-risk and high-reward crime.”

Read Full Article from its Source: https://www.circularonline.co.uk/news/fly-tipping-on-the-rise-as-bbc-exposes-waste-licence-failure/