17/12/2024: Breckland Council issues more fines as fly-tipping and littering crackdown continues

Breckland Council's ongoing crackdown on littering and fly-tipping in the district has seen more people receive fines from the council's Environmental Enforcement Team. Penalties totalling £1,650 have been issued for four incidents which occurred recently.

In one instance, a large amount of green waste, mostly consisting of moss, was discarded on the side of a road in Great Ellingham. A fine of £400 was subsequently paid after a local landowner reported seeing the vehicle involved in the incident which enabled the culprit to be traced.

A resident from Melford Common was also fined £500 for discarding garden fencing on a public footpath, declining to clear it away or have it legally discarded, causing obstruction and risk to members of the public.

In another Thetford incident, Breckland received a detailed report of fly-tipping from a member of the public who had observed individuals leaving several unwanted items on the Abbey Estate in the town, all of which could have been discarded at the recycling centre for free. The informant identified the address responsible, and even though the occupant claimed to have paid a waste carrier to collect and dispose of the waste, no further details were provided, so the resident was issued a fine of £500.

In another case, officers were informed of litter next to a secluded track within Harling Woods. A clue that was found linked to a local business address. The business was contacted to confirm that a member of staff had been using the business address to order personal items. The member of staff paid a fixed penalty notice of £250 and is now under investigation by their employer.

Cllr Helen Crane, Executive Member for Waste, Environmental Health, Licensing & Sustainability, said: "Littering and fly-tipping continue to be a source of annoyance for our residents as well as damaging our beautiful district. With the help of our communities, Breckland Council is addressing the problem and working towards creating a cleaner, tidier environment for everybody. As these cases show, we will do everything we can to track down the minority who are harming our district, and the information our residents provide goes a long way in helping identify those responsible. I hope this will deter incidents in the future." 

If you see someone fly-tip, you canreport it online. (opens new window)