Say no to fly tipping
From fly-tipping to dog-fouling, graffiti removal to our arbour team we are working hard across the borough to improve our local environment.
However not everyone takes care of their rubbish in a responsible way and our environmental anti-social behaviour (ASB) officers are on hand to give advice and support and take action when necessary.
Impact of the service
Last year we dealt with 5,741 flytipping incidents, 2,117 of which were in back lanes.
Our team responds to queries about lots of things including fly-tipped waste and accumulations of waste in gardens and yards. We offer advice on how to resolve the issue properly. If our advice is ignored we have different steps we will take:
- Step 1 - serious fly-tips might receive a £100 Fixed Penalty Notice straight away, for others we might issue a warning outlining what action needs to be taken
- Step 2 - where warnings don't result in change, notices follow, with instructions given
- Step 3 - if no improvements are made, a £100 Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) can be issued, or prosecution when notice are not complied with.
If paid, money from a FPN will fund further education and enforcement to keep communities clean, if ignored the individual could face a criminal conviction. Depending on the offence fines of up to £2,500 can be imposed. Due to the seriousness of some offences, some convictions can result in an unlimited fine.
One example of a successful outcome has been in the Bridges ward. Following concerns, raised by residents and councillors, about the extent and recurrence of fly-tipping, Linda, one of our environmental ASB officers, supported the neighbourhood so residents now:
- feel able to challenge those who continue to fly tip
- arrange their own community litter picks on weekends
With our support residents have been able to transform concern into community action showing everyone what is possible when our communities work together to protect public spaces.
Supporting Gateshead to thrive
More than 31.6m people have said 'litter-free' streets would help them love where they live and we want Gateshead to be a place everyone is proud of.
Tony - "I'm delighted, Gateshead Council are looking into prosecuting people who make working people's lives a nightmare."
Barbara - "I went on holiday and came back, the lane has been swept, and children were playing out."
Councillor McElroy, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said:
"We want to work with residents to keep our streets clean and tidy so everyone can be proud of their local neighbourhood. Our team are on hand to give advice and support so people can get rid of their waste responsibly. We will take action when we need to as we need everyone to consider the impact of their actions and do their bit to improve their local areas. It's fantastic that residents are proactively looking for ways to help their local environment."
Hear more about the work being done to address fly-tipping in Gateshead: