Lack of action on fly-tipping by Bridgend council frustrating residents

Many residents have “given up” reporting incidents of fly-tipping to a Welsh native authority attributable to lack of motion on the problem, campaigners have stated.

It comes as new figures present that Bridgend Council has not prosecuted anybody for fly-tipping for nearly 10 years, regardless of receiving over 1,500 reviews a 12 months of garbage being dumped.

“We have tried over time to push them… however they don’t seem to be ready to take motion,” stated Huw Griffiths of Coity Wallia Commoners’ Affiliation.

Bridgend Council stated it had shifted its focus in the direction of prevention and schooling lately, given “the assets that stay obtainable to us”.

In 2023-24, Bridgend Council recorded 1,510 incidents of fly-tipping, a slight discount on the 1,600 reported within the earlier 12 months.

However regardless of these occurrences, it was now nearly a decade for the reason that council prosecuted anybody.

Mr Griffiths, who’s retired however beforehand labored for the Surroundings Company, stated the inaction of Bridgend Council “does not shock” him.

“We have tried over time to push them into motion over fly-tipping,” he stated.

“However they advised us they weren’t ready to take motion until it is on council-owned property.

“The [fly-tipping] figures are most likely not correct anyway, as a result of individuals domestically have given up on reporting it – they’ve given up contacting the council as a result of they have not been addressing it.”

In 2020 Coity Wallia Commoners’ Affiliation received a personal prosecution over fly-tipping on close by farmland, in what was believed to the first case of its kind in Wales.

However 5 years on, Mr Griffiths, the group’s secretary, stated they’d been frequently “annoyed” by additional incidents which have since gone unpunished.

“We have had individuals fly-tipping luggage of garbage, and I do know of circumstances the place sheep have been killed from consuming them,” he stated.

“We have had damaged glass on the widespread, and the farmers getting collectively to clear it – there have been 4 bin luggage filled with bottles and issues like that.”

Whereas councils are chargeable for clearing fly-tipping from public land, they don’t have to clear waste from non-public land.

Since Bridgend Council’s final prosecution for fly-tipping, neighbouring authority Neath Port Talbot had introduced ahead 139 circumstances, with the overwhelming majority leading to fines.

Over the identical interval, Welsh authorities information signifies that Cardiff Council made 206 prosecutions, whereas Rhondda Cynon Taf had a complete of 143.

However the image throughout Wales is blended, with many recording solely a handful of prosecutions a 12 months – and Anglesey Council having none going again nearly 20 years.

Bridgend council stated it investigated all situations of reported fly-tipping and waste points. However, by regulation, it needed to “display that now we have tried to work with residents previous to issuing mounted penalty notices”.

It stated that there had been a discount within the variety of fly-tipping and waste incidents within the borough since 2022-23.

The dearth of prosecutions, it added, was attributable to an elevated give attention to prevention and schooling for individuals, on the best way to recycle and get rid of waste in a secure and accountable method.

It added: “Whereas this strategy is proving to be efficient, wherever acceptable the authority will nonetheless search to take motion in opposition to offenders who refuse to make use of the waste and recycling system correctly.”