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At this month’s full council meeting, Cllr. Tim Thomas (Ind, St. Bride’s Minor & Ynysawdre) asked about the council’s plans to tackle fly-tipping and littering.
Cllr. Thomas quotes from a Freedom of Information request submitted by a member of Ynysawdre Community Council. It showed that rates of fly-tipping remained “stubbornly high” while the issuing of fines remained “stubbornly low”. In 2016, out of 1,080 recorded fly-tips, only 3 fines were issued by BCBC.
The Council has previously stated their preferred policy was to focus on education and prevention, but Cllr. Thomas believes that approach hasn’t made an impact.
Did the Cabinet agree that this education-based approach was failing? And if it is failing, when will residents see a tougher approach to fly-tipping?
Education-based approach "is working"
Joint Cabinet Member for Communities, Cllr. Gary Haines (Lab, Aberkenfig), praised the work of the highways and waste collection teams who clean up fly-tipping and litter.
He went on to add that fly-tipping needed a “balanced” approach between enforcement and education, with education currently favoured.
He rejected Cllr. Thomas’ suggestion that fly-tipping remained “stubbornly high”. The same figures in the quoted FOI request show year-on-year decreases in fly-tipping for the past three years. This suggested that the council’s focus on education was working.
That didn’t mean the situation would remain that way; if the balance needed to be shifted towards enforcement, BCBC would do so.
However, Cllr. Haines warned that enforcement comes at an increased cost in terms of legal work needed to establish proof of an offence.
