‘Hidden cost’ of fly-tipping dumped in countryside

AN agricultural expert is warning of the ‘hidden cost’ of fly-tipping after it was revealed more than £50,000 was spent in Halton cleaning up mess in just 12 months.

Newly-released figures from Department For The Environment, Food And Rural Affairs (DEFRA) revealed that more than one million incidents were dealt with by councils in England in 2016-17, costing taxpayers nationally £58m to clear up.

For Halton Borough Council, the cost of cleaning up the 932 recorded fly-tipping incidents stood at £51,129.

The number of instances dealt with in Runcorn and Widnes last year was a rise from the 871 in 2015-16.

There were 128,193 reported incidents in the North West between April 2016 and March 2017 – an increase of 9% on last year – and cost taxpayers across the region more than £9m.

The DEFRA figures only account for flytipping incidents on council land.

William Nicholl, head of insurance specialist Lycetts’ rural division, warns the figures are not a true reflection of the cost of flytipping across the North West.

Farmers who fall prey to such crime are having to shoulder the burden, being responsible for meeting the cost of clearing rubbish from their land themselves – at an average cost of £1,000 per incident – and are also liable if the dumped rubbish damages the countryside.

Mr Nicholl said: “Farmers are well aware of this issue and are saddened by the visual impact it has on the countryside they maintain, as well as it being a nuisance and inconvenience when trying to get on with their normal, daily jobs.

“However, I don’t think that farmers are as aware that, should they fail to deal with incidences of fly-tipping on their land and it leads to environmental damage, they could be held liable under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

“With many authorities looking at introducing charges for bulky waste and organic waste collections and charging for dumping waste at council-run tips, there is a fear that fly-tipping incidents on farmland will increase.

“Farmers are not only having to fork out for clean-up costs but are having to worry about the damage it can cause to workers and their animals. Fly-tipping can affect every part of their livelihood.”