The Isle of Wight has one of the lowest rates of fly-tipping in the whole of the South East, according to the latest government data.
Fly-tipping can be classed as anything from 1 bag of household rubbish to several van loads of construction material. If it is dumped on land that doesn’t have a licence to accept waste, it is fly-tipping and it is illegal.
Island Echo reported in December that incidents of fly-tipping have gone up 30%, with 749 recorded incidents in 2020/21 vs 575 in 2019/20.
Councillor Jonathan Bacon, Cabinet member for environment, heritage and waste management, has said:
“Taking enforcement action and investigating dog fouling and fly-tips is not easy and requires clear evidence which, unfortunately, many professional fly-tippers are good at removing.
“It also necessitates a proportional response when the culprit is identified. Such an approach must take account of whether it is a first time offence, the size and scale, and the fact that some cases are genuine mistakes.
“It also involves steps of talking to the culprit, education, informal/formal warnings and, in many cases, providing the responsible person with the opportunity to take corrective actions and pay for the cost of clear up.
“This will often take place, to positive effect, prior to consideration being given to prosecution or other restrictive enforcement. That said, in some situations the severity of the offence must and will result in more immediate enforcement action.
Article continues below this advertisement “The council is often criticised for the limited number of prosecutions that take place, however this does not mean the system is failing.”
The council has a dedicated team of enforcement officers who spend their days patrolling the streets, talking to the community and investigating litter, vandalism, graffiti, dog fouling, bin misuse and fly-tips. From 1st April to 31st December 2021, 83 formal investigations were opened with 11 warning letters sent and 3 fixed penalty notices issued.
However, it’s known that the Isle of Wight Council issued no fixed penalty notices in relation to fly-tipping in 2019/20 nor 2020/21.
Dog owners too are being reminded that when it comes to their pet poo, any general waste bin will do.
Natasha Dix, strategic manager, contracts, waste and environment, adds:
“The majority of dog owners are responsible. On the Island we currently send around 20 tonnes of dog poo a month to landfill, all gathered from dedicated dog bins. That is about the same weight as three-and-a-half elephants or 12 cars.
“However dog poo dangling from trees, dog fouling on pathways and where to put dog poo are issues that the council takes very seriously. Both council officers and councillors deal with these sort of issues on a daily basis.
“It is important to stress to dog owners that, when it comes to their pet poo, any general waste bin will do Dog poo can go in litter bins, dog bins and the black waste bins at home — but please do bag it before binning it.”
Fly-tips, hazardous waste, litter and animal carcases on the highway and pavements should be reported to Island Roads on 01983 822440 or by email at [email protected].
Complaints relating to council public land (parks, beaches, playgrounds, public footpaths etc.) should be reported online via the council’s website or by calling the council’s waste services on 01983 823777.
11 warning letters and 3 penalty notices in 9 months from a team of enforcement officers.
what’s a busy day like?
Another case of fiddling the figures, all you have to do is to look around at what’s being dumped wherever they want
Just because we have the lowest does not mean we’re doing a good job. Just that everyone else is worst than us.
More self congratulation from the council, think you boys and girls deserve a payrise, oh sorry, you just voted yourselves one.
You make it difficult to access the services we pay for, ie the tip, and increase the charge on garden bins.
Do I have to spell out what happens next? Bunch of self serving idiots.
There is a so called, licensed waste carrier who lives in our road. He spends his time trying to avoid using the facility’s he is apparently registered to use. A man who lives alone does not need & should not have 5 or 6 wheelie bins. I along with many of the neighbours have watched him pull up in his truck & empty heaven knows what into these domestic bins. Larger items are transferred to his car and panel van, then taken to the tip unpaid for & garden waist gets deposited at the local Golf course!! So even those who have PAID to have their rubbish cleared legally, are unknowingly paying to have it fly tipped illegally!!
Sounds like a good business man to me. Have you got his phone number ?
The Isle of Wight may well have the lowest rate of fly tipping in the UK, but that is not an excuse not to investigate and prosecute those responsible for this crime and it is a crime.
Apparently, not one single prosecution on the island!
Really….have they looked at the road sides lately and in the forests.
That number is not waste services though is it. It is a call centre. The waste department refuse to take calls from the public. So why do they pretend they have a direct phone number?