Over 3,000 fly-tipping reports were made to Trafford council over a year – but just 23 fines were issued.
The task of catching those responsible for illegally dumping rubbish is proving to be an uphill struggle for local authorities as it soared during lockdown.
Over the 2019-20 financial year, 3,274 fly-tipping incidents were flagged to Trafford council but fines were issued for just 0.7pc of those reported.
The authority has since upped its on-the-spot fine amounts for fly-tipping during lockdown to try and deter the culprits, from £200 to £400 – and the authority said it has issued more than 100 fines so far this financial year.
According to government data, in 2019-20 it was Trafford’s back alleyways that saw the largest number of illegal rubbish dumping incidents. A total of 1,615 reports were made for rubbish spotted in these locations.
Then, the next highest amount of incidents occurred on the borough’s highway network – with 1,332 incidents reported here.
Most of the waste being dumped in Trafford is household waste – making up for 1,386 incidents.
Black bin bags filled with rubbish make up the second most common type of rubbish dumped illegally across the borough, with 1,248 incidents reported.
Under the law that covers fly-tipping, the Environmental Protection Act (EPA), just three fixed penalty notices were issued by Trafford council in 2019-20 specifically for fly-tipping.
A spokesperson for Trafford council said: “Fly-tipping is a blight on our communities – there are no excuses for it and we will crack down on anyone we find fly-tipping or dropping litter.
“It is important to note that the data provided has only captured one section of fines issued by authorities under the EPA. In 2019-20, we also issued 20 fines under a different section of the EPA and we currently have 113 cases of fly-tipping under investigation which could result in a prosecution, rather than just a fine.
“This year, we have continued to crackdown on fly-tippers. This has included issuing more than 100 fines due to fly-tipping. We have also raised our on-the-spot fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping from £200 to £400. Littering penalties have also gone up from £100 to £150.”
