Hastings at top of fly-tipping poll (From The Argus)

Hastings at top of fly-tipping poll

12:50pm Tuesday 5th July 2011 in News

Hastings at top of fly-tipping poll

Fly-tipping is costing councils tens of thousands of pounds a year to clean up.

Hastings has topped a survey of local authorities in the county hit by people illegally dumping rubbish.

The latest available figures reveal that the town had 3,448 incidents of fly-tipping, equivalent to one for every 25 residents.

Overall, Hastings came 29th in the national survey of 325 councils carried out by a recycling firm.

Brighton and Hove was the second worst hit in Sussex with 1,809 incidents, equivalent to one for every 142 residents.

Fridges, washing machines and a former BT truck were among 43 tonnes of rubbish cleaned from three sites in Moulsecoomb and Bevendean in March alone.

Last year 81 animal carcasses were dumped across the city in a three month period.

Dangerous items such as asbestos, clinical items and construction waste were also abandoned in public places.

Jason Mohr, founder of anyjunk.co.uk which carried out the survey, said fly tipping has increased.

The maximum fine for anyone caught illegally dumping rubbing rubbish has now increased from £5,000 to £20,000.

Mr Mohr said: “Waste regulations are getting tougher and with disposal costs increasing a significant amount of waste gets dumped illegally.

“It is often transported by a carrier who is uninsured, overloaded or unlicensed.

“We are not about naming and shaming but by raising awareness of the g rowing problem we hope to be able to change things.”

Wor thing came 10th among Sussex councils in the survey while neighbouring Adur was 12th.

Paul Willis, strategy manager for both councils, disputed the survey's figures saying last year there were only 449 cases of fly-tipping compared to 2,248 in 2006, while Adur had 391 reported cases.

Wor thing spent £17,503 cleaning up dumped rubbish last year while Adur spent £13,476.

Mr Willis said: “Prosecuting people depends on witnesses coming forward to report fly-tipping “We will always prosecute where we have the evidence to do so.”

Brighton and Hove City Council said it had a duty to enforce laws against fly-tipping A spokesman said: “More robust government regulations have not necessarily seen an increase in the problem we deal with on a daily basis.

“This can be anything from dumping a van’s contents on a patch of land to leaving a television on a pavement.

“The public can help us to tackle the problem by reporting fly-tipping to us on 01273 292929.”

Eastbourne Borough Council came sixth in the survey with 838 cases reported in 2009, when the last figures were compiled.

Councillor Steve Wallis, the council’s environment spokesman, said: “While we accept that tipping occurs in Eastbourne the council is very efficient at dealing with it to keep the town clean.

“We will not tolerate fly tipping and will continue to prosecute whenever possible.”