Fly-tippers costing pounds 6 million a year; SHOCKING COST TO MIDLAND COUNCILS OF CLEAR UP.MIDLAND taxpayers are being forced to pay almost pounds 6 million EVERY YEAR because of fly-tippers. Councils across the region are facing the huge bill to clear away rubble, old tyres, building waste and furniture dumped on public land. But an increasing number of the offenders have been tracked down and prosecuted for their environmental crimes over the past two years. These include a Worcester company ordered to pay pounds 75,000 for fly-tipping and a Shropshire Shropshire (shrŏp`shĭr, –shər), county (1991 pop. 401,600), 1,348 sq mi (3,491 sq km), W England. It is also sometimes called Salop. The county seat is Shrewsbury. resident who was left more than pounds 7,000 out of pocket. The shocking pounds 6 million figure was revealed by Doug Freakley, Environment Crime Team Leader for the Environment Agency. He said: "Fly-tipping is a crime that causes serious harm to the environment and blights communities. "We want both businesses and members of the public to join us in the fight to put a stop to it by reporting it if they see it. We also want to make flytippers aware that their chances of getting caught are increasing." The severity of the problem is spread across the region. Last year Birmingham City Council dealt with 47,260 incidents which cost pounds 2.4 million to clean up, while Sandwell faced a pounds 440,000 bill after 9,200 cases. Wolverhampton Council dealt with 8,331 fly-tippers, costing taxpayers pounds 848,332, and Walsall faced 2,710 incidents and a pounds 242,000 clean-up. Solihull Council dealt with almost 5,000 cases - costing it pounds 291,000. The councils have now joined forces with the Environment Agency and Keep Britain Tidy Keep Britain Tidy is a British campaign run by the ENCAMS environmental charity, which is part funded by the U.K. government. The majority of their campaigning is around the issue of litter. They have been using 'Keep Britain Tidy' as their slogan for almost fifty years. to form a Crime Liaison Group to tackle the problem. Among the worst business offenders over the past two years is Worcester demolition Demolition is the opposite of construction: the tearing-down of buildings and other structures. It contrasts with deconstruction, which is the taking down of a building while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use. company Mid Developments Ltd which was fined pounds 75,000 in April 2008 for fly-tipping in Portway, Birmingham. But Midland residents have also been caught in the act. Brian Holford, of Bridgnorth, was fined pounds 5,750 with costs of pounds 2,000 for dumping caravans, demolition waste, metal drums, wheels, tyres and household items on land at Wrens Nest, in Highley and Nottinghamshire man Mark James Eyre Sir James Eyre (1734 - 1 July 1799) was an English judge, the son of the Rev. Thomas Eyre, of Wells, Somerset. He was educated at Winchester College and at St John's College, Oxford, which he left without taking a degree. was brought to court last month after CCTV CCTV abbr. closed-circuit television CCTV closed-circuit television filmed him off loading bricks, concrete blocks and slabs at the side of a road. He was fined pounds 250 and ordered to pay costs of more than pounds 2,100.. CAPTION(S): Mark James Eyre was caught fly tipping by CCTV cameras |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion