It’s time to consign flytipping to the bin

The cost to communities of the illegal dumping of waste goes far beyond the financial burden borne by those left to clean up the mess.

There is a social price which is paid by those living near the site of flytipping sites.

The run-down image suffered by communities blighted by reckless dumping can affect house prices and is a contributory factor to areas suffering inequality and deprivation.

The sight of piles of rubbish, not to mention the potential health risk, can also affect the mental health of those living nearby – those living in a depressing environment are, naturally, likely to suffer as a consequence.

Such knock-on effects will be of no consequence to the selfish few who see nothing wrong with dumping car, van and lorry-loads of waste wherever they see fit.

Increasing incidences of flytipping are being fuelled by profiteers who promise to dispose of household waste responsibly, for a fee, but have no intention of doing so.

Permit schemes are now being trialled in an attempt to combat the growing menace but they come with a warning the problem may get worse before it gets better.

Councils now spend a small fortune providing state-ofthe-art waste facilities.

Those who refuse to use them and seek out a cheap “white van man” instead will have little cause for complaint if their street becomes the next illegal dumping ground.