Meet the team tackling fly tipping in Renfrewshire

Renfrewshire Council is aiming to crack down on fly tipping with the creation of a new team dedicated to catching people and businesses in the act.

Six officers are putting a focus on fly tipping in Renfrewshire with the aim of identifying offenders, reducing the number of instances taking place, and increasing the number of fines and reports to the Procurator Fiscal.

The team has already issued nine Fixed Penalty Notices (FPN’s) with four of these paid and five actively being progressed, while evidence is being gathered for one larger scale investigation and three private landowners have removed fly tipping at the team’s request.

Working in two teams, they are carrying out proactive visits to hot spot areas, as well as responding to reports from members of the public, and they seek to identify the person or business that has dumped waste illegally.

They search the fly tipping for evidence of the offender, including speaking to people locally to see if they witnessed the waste being left behind and reviewing CCTV footage, and they then arrange for the removal of the waste through the council’s StreetScene team.

They will also support the deployment and review of mobile CCTV cameras, make regular visits to local businesses to ensure they have the appropriate waste disposal arrangements, and they’ll work closely with volunteers from the council’s Team Up to Clean Up campaign to support them in their activities and respond to environmental concerns.

Demi is one of the new officers in the team and is determined to make a difference to the issue in Renfrewshire.

Demi said: “Fly tipping is an issue I’m passionate about, as I’m sure most people are, as it’s selfish and has such a detrimental impact on our environment.

“I don’t believe there’s ever an excuse for fly tipping when our recycling centres are available, there is a special uplift service provided by the council, and there are many other businesses that can provide a reputable service to remove waste.

“It’s hard to catch people in the act but having this dedicated team will make it far more likely and I hope that we will be able to provide strong cases to the Procurator Fiscal to ensure those caught are punished appropriately – as that’s the only way it will stop.”

The team will work closely with other services across the council and partners to take a collaborative approach to fly tipping in the area, including liaising with schools, property services, housing associations, SEPA, Keep Scotland Beautiful and Zero Waste Scotland.

Councillor Michelle Campbell, Convener of Renfrewshire Council’s Infrastructure, Land and Envrionment Policy Board, said: “I’m delighted that there will be a dedicated team in place to try and catch these, often repeat, offenders.

“Fly tipping has such a detrimental impact on our environment, makes the area look unsightly and is illegal, so it’s extremely important that we catch people or businesses, issue FPNs and report them to the Procurator Fiscal when appropriate.

“If you’re getting rid of anything, please ask to see the business’ waste carriers license and don’t let them take your waste until you see it – if it ends up being fly tipped, it remains your responsibility and you could be fined.

“In line with our Team Up to Clean Up and Ren Zero campaigns, we want to try to eradicate fly tipping from Renfrewshire in order to improve and protect our environment, and this team is an important step on the way to doing so.”

For more information on fly tipping, including how to report this online to the team, visit www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/teamuptocleanup.