Hull City Council said it has cleared up a total of 16,625 incidents in the past year, costing local taxpayers more than £486,000
Hull City Council is teaming up with Keep Britain Tidy for ‘Fight Fly-Tipping Fortnight’. The new campaign aims to crack down on rogue operators.
According to the council, fly-tipping costs councils across England millions of pounds every year in clean-up costs, draining money that could otherwise be spent on essential local services. Hull City Council said it has cleared up a total of 16,625 incidents in the past year, costing local taxpayers more than £486,000.
The campaign is calling on the people of Hull to protect themselves from low-cost, unlicensed services by ‘organised waste criminals.’ These rogue operators illegally dump household waste on streets, fields and public spaces.
The council said that there are three simple things residents can do to prevent this from happening. This includes asking for a waste carrier registration number, check it on the Environment Agency’s public register or call 0300 065 3000, and check you will get a receipt.
Councillor Charles Quinn, portfolio holder for environment, said: “Fly-tipping has a real impact in Hull and is a deep source of frustration for our residents. Not only is it a blight on our local environment, with everything from refrigerators to asbestos dumped near schools, it costs taxpayers thousands in clean–up costs – money that could otherwise be spent on other essential council services.
“Our teams work tirelessly to tackle the problem, but we need our community’s help to stop it at the source. We’re asking people to check who they pay to take rubbish away. If a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is – and sadly it’s our residents and communities who ultimately pay the price.”
Dr. Anna Scott, Director of Services at Keep Britain Tidy, said “Councils are on the frontline of the fight against fly-tipping, responding day in, day out to clear dumped waste and keep our public spaces safe and clean. We know how much pressure this puts on already stretched local teams and we’re incredibly grateful to Hull City Council for joining forces with us for Fight Fly-tipping Fortnight.
“This campaign is about empowering residents to play their part in tackling this growing issue. By making simple checks before handing over waste and always getting a receipt, people can protect themselves from rogue traders, stop organised criminal networks in their tracks and help ensure public money is spent where it’s needed most.”
Fight Fly-tipping Fortnight runs from Monday, November 10, until Sunday, November 23. To report fly-tipping, click here.
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