City to tackle fly-tipping with new £50k funding

Rubbish was found fly-tipped outside a GP practice in Peterborough city centre

A city council has been granted a new funding to tackle rising fly-tipping in the area.

Peterborough City Council said it has seen a 12% increase in the issue between January and April - compared to same period last year.

April proved to be the worst on record, with 1,085 incidents recorded across Peterborough.

The authority has been awarded just under £50,000 by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) as part of a nationwide scheme to target fly-tipping hotspots - including the city's central and north wards.

In rural areas fly-tipping individual incidents are much larger

Peterborough City Council employs four officers whose main duties are to enforce environmental crime and other quality of life issues, including fly-tipping offences.

Since 1 January 2023, the council issued 251 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) for fly-tipping offences and 55 cases were taken to court.

The council said enforcement was heavily reliant on witnesses and obtaining scene evidence.

'Hot spots'

The new project will focus on two different areas of Peterborough: urban and rural, both of which are “severely impacted by regular and extensive fly-tipping”, the authorities said.

The council said it would establish a local delivery team, with officers from partner agencies including the police, local community leaders and educational establishments, to drive the project.

In urban areas, the "hot spot" central and north wards of Peterborough reported 3,492 incidents during a single 12-month period, the council said.

There were fewer recorded incidents in rural areas but the scale and cost were more significant, the authority said.

Peterborough City Council’s climate change and scrutiny committee will meet on Wednesday to review and comment on the delivery of the funding.