Repeat fly-tipping near Wooburn Common blamed on ‘charges at tip’

Heidi Edwards, of Green Common Lane, Wooburn Common, reported to Bucks Council repeat fly-tipping on her lane on March 22 and again the following day, adding she felt the “main issue” is people having to “pay to dump trade waste”.

She said she had known of fly-tipping ‘sitting for weeks’ unless it is blocking traffic, adding tip charges were helping to turn “beautiful lanes into a rubbish dump”.

PICTURED: The debris left at Green Common Lane

PICTURED: Wooden sheets, and bags dumped on Green Common Lane

READ MORE: Crumbling kerbs and cracked pavements result of ‘years of council negligence’

On social media another local seemed to agree: “This is because the local recycling centres are charging.

“My family owns a farm in Penn and dumping has increased tenfold since they have started charging again at the local dump.”

Mrs Edwards also criticised the council for “shoving the rubbish” to one side while attempting to clear it, while “chucking” traffic cones in a ditch.

“Enough is enough,” Mrs Edwards wrote online. “Our council is not protecting our beautiful county from people who don’t want to pay for trade waste licences.”

PICTURED: Building materials dumped at Green Common Lane

PICTURED: Fence panels dumped at Green Common Lane

READ MORE: Council 'sorry' for thousands of incorrect council tax bills sent to residents

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) on March 23, Mrs Edwards said: “Would you believe, exactly the same thing happened…yesterday and then again today.

“Tippers driving about dumping rubbish as they are moving. It is becoming a huge problem.

“The main issue is most likely the fact that people have to pay to dump trade waste now. It is turning our beautiful lanes into a rubbish dump.

“The only way to stop this is to make it free for trades to use, or to install ANPR CCTV cameras on all vulnerable lanes.

“I suspect that it is cheaper for councils to go about with a grab loader than either of those options.

“But meanwhile, unless a fly-tipping site is actually blocking a road, it can sit there for weeks, with rubbish blowing around the countryside, being ingested by local wildlife. It’s a travesty.”

PICTURED: Bucks Council put cones beside the rubbish

PICTURED: Traffic cones left in a ditch

However, once Bucks Council intervened, Mrs Edwards added: “The council clearly feel that shoving the rubbish out the way and putting down a couple of cones (whilst chucking more in the ditch) constitutes resolution. This is what we are battling.”

A Bucks Council spokesman said: "Buckinghamshire Council has a ‘zero tolerance’ enforcement policy for fly-tipping.

"We will investigate this dumping as far as the available evidence allows, as we do with every report we receive.

"We will continue to do all we can to bring those responsible to justice and to take measures to reduce fly-tipping.

"We can’t explain individual reasons for dumping and there is no evidence that charging for non-household waste at the Household Recycling Centres (HRCs) has increased fly-tipping.

"The enforcement team have collected some data since charges came in and 95 per cent of fly-tipped waste since charges were brought in at HRCs is trade waste or household waste, neither of which were affected by charges for non-household waste."

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