Rangers tackle city's 'relentless' fly-tipping

Sunny Singh-Rodh says he "will catch" people who dump waste illegally

A team responsible for clearing up a city's waste has called fly-tipping "relentless".

Fly-tip rangers working for Bristol City Council were taking part in a campaign to tackle waste crime after figures showed more than 10,000 piles of rubbish were cleared by Bristol Waste in 2024.

"You get hotspots where it's done almost every couple of days at the same location, it's relentless," said Simon Turley, from Bristol Waste.

Recent council figures showed reports of fly-tipping in Bristol were up 14% in 2024 on the previous year, costing taxpayers about £1m.

Enforcement officers, such as Sunny Singh-Rodh and Tiv Darlington-Corp, sort through the fly-tipped rubbish to trace it back to its owner.

"It's normally cardboard boxes, letters, anything with a name and an address on so we can locate the person and issue a fine," said Ms Darlington-Corp.

Meanwhile Mr Singh-Rodh said he had even spoken to some fly-tippers directly.

"It can sometimes be awkward but we've got to stick by what Bristol City Council laws are regarding rubbish," he said.

"I will catch them and I do on a regular basis," he added.

Figures showed more than 10,000 piles of rubbish were cleared by Bristol Waste in 2024

As part of a campaign dubbed Fight Fly-Tipping Fortnight, Bristol City Council along with Bristol Waste and Keep Britain Tidy, was also urging people to protect themselves from unlicensed waste carriers, who were paid to dispose of rubbish and then dump it in a public place.

"You can check through the Environment Agency if they are a licenced waste carrier," said waste enforcement officer Steve Eyers.

"If they are taking your waste they should leave a waste transfer note, like a receipt," he said.

"Check, double check and take a photograph too just to make sure," he added.