What is fly-tipping?
Fly tipping is the illegal dumping of waste. Typically it can be general household waste, domestic Items such as fridges, beds and washing machines, garden waste, commercial waste such as builder’s rubble, tyres and clinical waste. In fact, it could be almost anything dumped anywhere it shouldn’t be. It is unsightly, unhealthy and costs taxpayers and private landowners an estimated £150 million every year to clean up.


What do we do about it?
Waveney District Council’s Cleansing, Refuse and Environmental Services teams work together to take preventative measures, investigate incidents and clean up or remove illegally dumped waste.

The Council is responsible for removing litter and fly-tipping, or dumped rubbish, from public land. Public land includes roads, pavements, adopted passageways, council-owned car parks, parks and recreation areas, laybys etc. There is no charge for this service.

Officers will clear incidents of fly-tipping on public land as soon as possible, with the majority of incidents being removed within 24 hours of reporting. While they are doing this, they will try to identify the source of the waste and take appropriate enforcement action where possible. The Council works with the Environment Agency to identify incidents that may linked to organised and systematic breaches of waste licensing law.

Occasionally, specialist equipment may need to be hired or a large amount of evidence gathered. This can take time, so do bear with us. Unless there is a serious imminent risk to public health, or the environment, we may not be able to get such deposits removed immediately.

Officers will respond to reports of fly-tipping on private land by investigating the circumstances and trying to identify the source of the waste where possible. They will negotiate with the land owner to get the waste removed and disposed of properly.


Fly-tipping and the law
The fly-tipping of controlled waste is a serious criminal offence which carries a fine of up to £50,000 (unlimited if indicted to the Crown Court) or an offender can even be prosecuted and sent to prison.

Fly-tipping is often associated with dumping waste from vehicles. In this case the person controlling the use of the vehicle can also be prosecuted, which means that it is possible for a prosecution to occur when only the vehicle, not the driver, is identifiable. In addition to this, vehicles involved in fly-tipping can be seized.

Download Fly Tipping Leaflet (55Kb) (Opens new window)
Audio Version (mp3 format) (996Kb)


I want to get rid of some waste
You can help reduce our impact on the environment by making maximum use of the available recycling facilities. Please visit the following pages to find out what is accepted in your kerbside collection, or to find details of the Council’s Bulky Items collection service (for which a charge applies):

Sorting your Rubbish
Disposing of Bulky Items

Items of household waste that you can’t put into your wheelie bins can be taken to one of the Household Waste Recycling Centres run by the County Council. They are located at Blyth Road, Southwold; Fen Lane, Beccles; and Hadenham Road, South Lowestoft Industrial Estate. Please note that these sites do not accept trade waste or certain hazardous waste. Other restrictions also apply, so please check first if in any doubt. Visit www.suffolkcc.gov.uk or telephone 0845 6066067 for full details.


How can you help?
The Council treats this growing problem very seriously and will prosecute anyone caught fly tipping waste. We need the public to report problems as they happen and pass information to us promptly. All we need is a little bit of information to get us started, like where fly-tipping has occurred. If we don’t know about it, we can’t deal with it.

You do not have to give your details when you contact us about fly-tipping but it may help us if we need to get back to you for further information. If you do give us your details, we will keep them confidential.

There few simple rules you need to follow to provide the best information possible, keep yourself safe and preserve the evidence.

If you discover fly-tipped waste after the tippers have left, please:

• Do not touch the waste as it can be dangerous - it may contain syringes, broken glass, asbestos, toxic chemicals or other hazardous substances.
• Visually inspect it and try to determine its contents and how much there is.
• Take note of its exact location and whether it is in or near water.
• Do not disturb the site. There may be evidence that could help identify the culprits and lead to their prosecution.
• Tell us using the web reporting form at the top of this page or telephone Environmental Services on 01502 523117.

If you see someone fly tipping, please make a note of:

• The day, date and time you saw the tipping.

What you saw:

• How many people and what hat they looked like,
• What they were doing and what was tipped 
• Any vehicles involved (make, colour and registration number)
• Where were you when you saw the fly-tipping:
• What kind of view you had and how far away you were
• Weather and light conditions

Remember - Don't Put Yourself At Risk!

Contact us

If you would like more information about fly-tipping, or wish to report an incident contact Environmental Services:
Email: Environment@waveney.gov.uk  
Telephone: 01502 523117
Write: Town Hall, High Street, Lowestoft NR32 1HS.
In person: At any Waveney District Council local office.

Consultation
If you have any ideas or suggestions as to how we can improve our services or the information we have provided, then we would be pleased to hear from you. The contact information you require is detailed above.