Council Significantly Increases Fines for Fly-Tipping

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Anyone caught dumping rubbish in Ealing will have to pay £400 on-the-spot

Dumped commercial waste on Windmill Road W5

Anyone caught fly-tipping rubbish on Ealing borough streets that from 15 August they will face a £400 on-the-spot fine. Ealing is one of the first boroughs to adopt the higher rate fixed penalty notice.

Fly-tipping of household and business waste can lead to a criminal prosecution. The council has been tackling the problem in Ealing through a mixed approach of giving one-to-one advice and support on the doorstep alongside what they say is tough enforcement.

A special team from the council’s recycling service has been knocking on doors in areas where problems are occurring, talking to residents to find out the causes of persistent issues and to put in place lasting solutions. Households that continue to dump black bags on the street after these visits are being referred to the council’s enforcement team so action can be taken against them.

At the same time, council officers and staff from its environmental enforcement contractor, Kingdom, have been patrolling the borough to catch offenders red-handed. To date, 111 of fixed penalty notices have been given to fly-tippers since 6 June.

Council officers have also been running joint operations with the police as well as using resident reports, searching through dumped bags, and using CCTV and mobile cameras in areas that attract fly-tippers. This information is being used to catch the culprits red handed and build a comprehensive picture of problem areas, and the causes of the fly-tips, so that more targeted action can be taken.

In one recent case, the council helped to catch fly-tippers illegally dumping rubbish outside of a dentist in Southall. After complaints were made, council officers visited the premises daily, searching through the rubbish bags before clearing them and using CCTV footage to identify those responsible. On one of their visits officers caught the fly-tippers in the act and they have now been issued with a fixed penalty notice.

Councillor Bassam Mahfouz, cabinet member for transport, environment and leisure, said: “The vast majority of residents and business are law abiding and care about the neighbourhood they live in. Like me, they are disgusted by the behaviour of the few people who feel they can act in an appalling manner by fly-tipping their rubbish rather than getting rid of it legally.

“If people are experiencing a problem using the rubbish and recycling service, help and support is available, but there is never any excuse for fly-tipping. That’s why we’ve increased the number of staff on the streets seeking to fine for this offence and deployed officers from Kingdom to catch the culprits.

“I ask residents to help us by being additional eyes and ears to identify those responsible so we can crack down on this selfishness.”

Cllr Greg Stafford, of the Conservative opposition said, “Residents of Ealing don’t want help and support using the rubbish and recycling service. What they need is for the Labour Administration to ensure that the contract is properly being delivered. Every week residents faithfully do their part, only for their rubbish and recycling to continually be missed for collection and worse yet, they can’t get through to the Council to complain.”

Residents can check whether a waste clearance company is licensed and legal by entering their details online.

August 4, 2016