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30 July, 2018

Successful prosecution of two residents caught fly-tipping

Two Thanet residents have been prosecuted for fly-tipping in the District.

The cases which were heard at Canterbury Magistrate’s Court earlier this month both resulted in hefty fines.

On Tuesday 10 July, a 33 year old woman from Alma Road, in Ramsgate pleaded guilty to fly-tipping and was ordered to pay £830.94. This includes a fine of £350, £445.94 in enforcement and clean up costs, as well as £35 victim surcharge. The fly-tip which was discovered last August had been discarded in the alleyway to the rear of the resident’s home address.

On the same day, a 56 year old man living in Hawley Square, Margate also pleaded guilty to fly-tipping. The waste which he left by the footpath at Caxton Road, Margate amounted to 100 black sacks. An early guilty plea resulted in a fine of £350 with costs of £120 plus £35 victim surcharge. In total, he was ordered to pay £505.

The enforcement officers at Thanet District Council often find that the fly-tipping reported in Thanet has been dumped by local people, sometimes right behind their own homes. Other prosecutions have occured where someone being paid to take waste away, has then fly-tipped it rather than disposing of it properly.

Cllr Rosanna Taylor-Smith, Cabinet Member for Operational Services commented:

“Fly-tipping continues to be an issue for Thanet. It’s not just large scale dumping but also people leaving unwanted furniture or broken electronics on the street or other land. It’s still illegal.

“People also need to be cautious when someone offers to take their waste away – check they are licensed to do so. The council offers a bulky waste collection service, charged at a nominal rate, for people who have larger items they wish to dispose of. There is also a recycling centre run by KCC at Manston Road which is open daily. We urge residents to make use of these services. Illegally dumping waste can have serious consequences.”

In the past year, Thanet District Council has issued more than 50 fixed penalty notices of £400 for fly-tipping and successfully prosecuted over 25 people. The council is obliged to invest a considerable amount of time and budget to cleaning up fly-tipped waste in the District.

Residents have a duty of care to ensure they only give their waste to registered waste carriers. Anyone who witnesses instances of fly-tipping is encouraged to report it online or via the My Thanet App. The enforcement team fully investigates sites where fly-tipping has taken place and whenever possible, those who have dumped waste illegally are prosecuted.

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