Huge increase in fly-tipping in the city during lockdown
REPORTS SHOW MASSIVE JUMP BUT COUNCIL WARNS OFFENDERS FACE PROSECUTION
FLY-TIPPING in Coventry is up 64 per cent year-on-year in the months during lockdown.
New figures show 3,471 fly-tipping reports were made to Coventry City Council between March and June - compared to 2,106 in the same period last year.
In March, incidents were up from 563 in 2019 to 602; in April they rose from 619 to 930; in May it doubled from 469 to 939, and in June incidents hit 1,000 rising from 455 the year before.
Fly-tipping incidents for the two months prior to lockdown were more in line with last year’s numbers: 1,230 across January and February this year compared to 1,200 last year.
Nationally fly-tipping incidents have risen, thought to be prompted by quieter roads due to lockdown easing, people clearing out their homes, and many local tips closing.
Coventry’s London Road tip closed at the start of lockdown but reopened on May 18, although flytipping incidents continued to rise that month and again in June.
Fly-tipping is a criminal offence and carries a fine of up to £50,000, or unlimited if it goes to crown court, while offenders could also be jailed for up to five years.
“There’s no excuse for fly-tipping, and we will continue enforce and even prosecute those who choose to do so,” Cllr Abdul Khan, the council’s deputy leader with responsibility for policing and equalities, said.
“It’s really disappointing to see such a huge increase in the number of fly-tipping incidents in Coventry during lockdown.
“Our teams have been working incredibly hard to keep all of our services going throughout the pandemic, and while there has been some disruption, we have been able to open and implement a new system at the tip to ensure that everyone in Coventry can dispose of additional waste safely and effectively, without damaging their local streets and environment.
“Thankfully, the majority of our residents dispose of their waste properly, and we’ve had over 25,000 bookings into the tip since it reopened.”
The London Road tip reopened on May 18 and has received 25,358 bookings since - a system that has won praise from residents who have been able to get in and out quickly.
“We have managed the situation very well and the feedback is that’s very popular, people like the booking system and might want to see it in the future to continue,” Bret Willers, head of climate change and sustainability, said at a scrutiny board meeting on Wednesday, July 8.