Fly tips in East and North Herts cleaned up with help of PCC fund

Four farmers in North and East Hertfordshire have had fly-tipped rubbish cleared up for free using money from a fund set up by the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

The sites, in Barley, Buntingford, Little Berkhamsted and Puckeridge, were blighted by tonnes of rubbish.

The landowners used a scheme run by the Office of the Hertfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner to cover the overall £10,600 cost of clearing the sites. The rubbish was made up of a substantial loads of shredded household waste.

Hertfordshire Constabulary have been made aware of the tips and an investigation is being led by the Environment Agency.

In one of the incidents damage was caused to gain entry to the site and the landowners are looking at target hardening methods to stop further offences taking place.

Hertfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner David Lloyd said: “All ten district and borough councils across Herts have joined the scheme. This shows how committed all parties are to tackling fly tipping.

“Fly tipping is one of the crimes I hear about most from the public. It blights the countryside and causes substantial costs for farmers and landowners to clear the waste, and poses a danger to road users, livestock and wildlife. It spoils the enjoyment of the countryside for all.

“I do not believe it is fair that farmers and landowners are left to pick up a bill, which can run in to thousands of pounds, because someone else has fly tipped on their property.”

The clean-up operations were paid for by the PCC using money from the Fly Tipping Fund, a £20,000 annual fund which was set up in 2018.

To be eligible for the funding farmers or green space landowners will have to prove they already have a waste disposal contract in place with an authorised collection firm.

The scheme is part of the county wide multi-agency and multi- channel campaign being run by the Herts Fly Tipping Group - #SCRAPflytipping.

Anyone interested in making a claim or finding out more information can contact the Environmental team at their district or borough councils and mention the Police and Crime Commissioner’s private land fly tipping pilot. The fund will close at the end of February 2024 and any new funding round due to be announced after the PCC Elections.

In all fly tips cases, representatives of the local council or Constabulary investigate the waste for clues of those responsible and collect any evidence which could be used in a prosecution. Those organisations or individuals found responsible for fly tipping face criminal charges and fines.

All contact details are available the PCC’s website https://www.hertscommissioner.org/listening-and-responding/funding/fly-tipping-fund/