Landowner fills skip with rubbish dumped on estate

Fly-tippers under fire after waste from Fife ends up 50 miles away in Perthshire

A Perthshire landowner has filled an entire skip with rubbish illegally dumped on his land.

Fife residents told Crawford Gillies they paid to have their rubbish disposed of, only to discover it had been dumped about 50 miles away on his Perthshire estate.

A Perth and Kinross councillor is now calling for farmers and landowners not to be charged to dispose of rubbish illegally dumped on their land.

Over the weekend social media was awash with images of rubbish dumped illegally across Perthshire.

Mr Gillies, who owns the 6,000-acre Kinnaird Estate, filled almost an entire skip with “unsightly” rubbish.

He reported the incident to Councillor John Duff and Perthshire North MSP John Swinney.

Mr Gillies said: “We had a big incident last week where we filled most of a skip with rubbish from various places.”

He added that fly-tipping incidents have definitely increased as a result of recycling centres being closed and believes criminals were behind the latest mess on his land.

He said: “People are looking for other ways to get rid of their rubbish.”

Mr Gillies worked through the rubbish and found things like bank statements which traced it back to residents 50 miles away in Dunfermline.

He said: “They were surprised when I contacted them. They said they had paid someone to take it away.”

The rubbish was dumped at the side of the B898, just five miles off the A9.

Conservative councillor Mr Duff said: “I urge everyone to make certain that anyone disposing of their waste, especially at this time, is doing so legitimately and to obtain a record of the transaction. Otherwise, you could be fined if it ends up getting dumped illegally. I would also ask everyone to be vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the police.”

“People are looking for other ways to get rid of their rubbish. CRAWFORD GILLIES

“I am aware many of these incidents are taking place on farmland and private grounds and that farmers and landowners would normally have to bear the labour and expense costs of disposing of this illegally dumped waste. I will be asking the council if it will allow fly-tipped material to be disposed of in our recycling centres free of charge for a certain period when the Scottish Government permits them to be reopened.”

Mr Swinney said: “I have written to Perth and Kinross Council, Sepa and Police Scotland to raise concerns over recent instances of fly- tipping.”

Over the weekend, Councillor Angus Forbes revealed a similar incident where residents from Dundee had paid to have their rubbish removed, only for it to be dumped in the Carse of Gowrie.

On Sunday, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the Scottish Government would speak to councils about the prospect of reopening recycling centres.