A man from Marlow who spotted 'substantial' fly-tipping just a few miles away from his house says the law isn't harsh enough on offenders who 'ruin the countryside'.

John Laker, who lives in central Marlow, spotted a pile of rubbish bags a few hundred metres west of Chisbridge Farm, to the north of the town, late this week.

Compared to other reports of waste dumping recently logged and dealt with across the county, it amounted to a "substantial" fly-tipping incident and left the local frustrated at what he views as meagre deterrents to a persistent and destructive recurring offence.

He said: "We, as council taxpayers, have to pay for these messes to be cleared away. Isn't it about time these people, ruining our countryside by dumping waste illegally, were fined at least £10,000, had their photos widely circulated and their vehicles confiscated to be sold at auction to raise the money necessary (for the clean-up operation)?"

Thomas Broom, cabinet member for climate change and environment at Buckinghamshire Council said the incident in question had been reported and was in the process of being cleared.

Adding: "We do not tolerate fly-tipping in Buckinghamshire and investigate all (reports), handy out hefty fines when we catch the culprits.

 “If you spot a fly-tip anywhere in Buckinghamshire please report it via Fix My Street so we can organise clearance where the waste is dumped on public land.”

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The council raised its maximum fixed penalty for the offence from £400 to £1,000 last year, but complying with the penalty notice allows offenders to retain their anonymity and avoid court action.

And the local authority isn't being shy about exercising the full extent of its power – two people were fined £1,000 in July after being caught on CCTV dumping waste on local roadsides, and an unnamed man also received the maximum penalty after leaving seven oil drums in a layby in Wexham back in August.

John isn't the only one who thinks fly-tippers are still getting off too lightly, however.

Council leader Martin Tett took a hard line against offenders at an annual general meeting in May, where he accused magistrates of being too soft on waste dumpers.

He said: “It is too easy to say, ‘Look, I stopped the car, took all those sacks of rubbish out and those old tyres (and) I really intended to put them back in, but I just drove off, forgetting them’.

“It is nonsense but somehow magistrates, it seems, believe people.”

He also said he would like to see the £50,000 Bucks Council annually collects in fly-tipping fines double or triple over the coming years.

Adding: “There is no excuse for that behaviour. There is absolutely no excuse and one of the things we have done as a council is very rapidly introduce the higher penalties that we became able to do legally.

“So, this time, if somebody is caught, they will get a substantial fine and there is no discount for early payment. This is now a significant penalty.”