Mobile CCTV will catch fly-tippers
Perth and Kinross Council has revealed it is investing in a re-deployable CCTV camera to help catch offenders at fly-tipping hotspots.
The council hopes this will lead to fly-tippers being prosecuted and is also seeking greater powers to clamp down on the problem.
Just this week two huge piles of rubbish were dumped at both a Perthshire park and a local beauty spot - much to the fury of Blairgowrie and Glens councillor Caroline Shiers.
Cllr Shiers was horrified at the amount of rubbish dumped at Davie Park in Rattray, Blairgowrie.
She heard about the rubbish being left earlier this week and went to take a look for herself.
Receipts and bank details found among the rubbish suggest it may have come from an address 40 minutes’ drive away in Broughty Ferry.
The Conservative member told the PA: “I took photos and removed a bag of paperwork which had names and addresses on it and will pass this on to officers.
“I very much hope this, and evidence gathered by members of the public, will help to track down whoever has dumped the waste. My suspicion is someone has paid for it to be removed and then it has been dumped.
“The message has to be that it is the homeowners’ rubbish and their responsibility, and that there can be fines issued for dumping.”
The councillor - who recently told the PA she wants stricter sanctions for litter louts - shared a photo of the rubbish on Facebook.
After sharing the post it emerged a similar amount of rubbish - also apparently traced back to Dundee - was dumped in the Den of Alyth car park, just six miles away earlier this week too.
Picturesque Perthshire has been blighted by similar incidents over the past year.
A PKC spokesperson said: “In the first instance, PKC always tries to work on educating anyone found responsible for fly-tipping. For example, ensuring householders have the correct information on kerbside and bring-site for household waste and that businesses put appropriate and legally compliant waste disposal arrangements in place to prevent any reoccurrence.
“However, on many occasions enforcement may be appropriate, and in this respect, the council’s waste services officers are currently working with SEPA to develop a partnership approach to enforcement, with a view to the council being given greater powers when dealing with flytipping.
“In addition, the council is purchasing a re-deployable CCTV camera which may help to capture instances of fly-tipping in hotspots across Perth and Kinross, with the aim that any footage captured can be used to lead to a prosecution.”
The spokesperson added: “We would encourage all members of the public to help reduce flytipping by being responsible with how they dispose of their own waste, and where they do spot fly-tipping, to report it as soon as possible.
“You can find out how to correctly dispose of excess household and commercial waste, and report incidents of flytipping on our website at http:// www.pkc.gov.uk/article/14829/ Fly-tipping”