Info on fly-tipping needed
Published
Wednesday 17 July, 2024
Updated
Wednesday 17 July, 2024
Swale Borough Council is asking for help in tracking down those behind incidents of large-scale fly-tipping in the borough.
The fly-tipping, which took place on Cromwell Road, Sheerness, and Raspberry Hill Lane, near Iwade, included large amounts of building waste, rubble and new insulation foam in black sacks.
The council will arrange for their waste contractor, Suez, to remove the fly-tipping that is on council owned land.
Anyone with any information about the incidents are being encouraged to contact the council at ert@swale.gov.uk.
Cllr Rich Lehmann, chair of the Environment and Climate Change Committee, said:
“This fly-tipping is absolutely unacceptable; it is incredibly frustrating to see selfish individuals spoil our country lanes and use them as their personal dumping ground.
“Building materials being disposed of illegally like this are not only an eyesore but can have very serious harmful consequences on our natural environment.
“We will work to get the waste on public land cleared, but that costs us significant time and resources, especially with fly-tipping of this scale.
“Please contact us if you witnessed anything suspicious or if you have any information about this fly-tipping, we need to work together to put a stop to these waste related crimes.”
Duty of care - what can you do to dispose of your waste responsibly?
Fly-tippers often target households via social media or local advertising, luring customers in with cheap rates to dispose of unwanted furniture, building rubble or garden waste.
However, these unlicensed waste carriers often simply dump the waste wherever they can get away with it, including in Kent’s country lanes.
Householders or small businesses found to be using criminals to dispose of their waste can and are being prosecuted by local authorities in Kent with fixed penalty notices. Failure to pay such an FPN may result in court action where fines can be significantly larger.
To prevent this, householders should check whether someone is licenced to carry waste by visiting the Environment Agency website, or calling 03708 506506.
It also helps if householders receive a written receipt or transfer note, including contact details, description of waste removed and details of where the waste is being taken to.
