More fines handed out for fly-tipping

Another three people have been fined for offences of littering, fly-tipping and commercial waste duty of care.

The council recently introduced Fixed Penalty Notices for the illegal dumping of waste as an alternative to the often lengthy and costly process of taking offenders to court.

The first eight fines were handed out in July and August, and another four have now been issued for the following:

• Littering on Mitchell Street, Bury
• Littering on land opposite Seymour Court, Radcliffe
• Commercial waste fly-tipped in the Holland Street area, Radcliffe. Two fines were issued to a business that fly-tipped waste and failed to produce waste transfer notes in relation to the disposal of their commercial waste. The fines totalled £700.

Councillor Alan Quinn, cabinet member for the environment, climate change and operations, said: “Fly-tipping is a criminal offence, and sadly it seems to be a national problem.

“It also costs Bury taxpayers tens of thousands of pounds to have it cleared up, money which could and should be spent on other essential services.”

Cllr Quinn urged individuals not to use unlicensed waste removal services but to check their credentials instead – you can do this via the Environment Agency’s website: https://environment.data.gov.uk/publicregister/view/search-waste-carriers-brokers

Commercial business are also reminded that they have a duty of care to ensure that any waste they produce is transferred to an authorised waste carrier. They must also be able to produce a written record of their waste disposal in the form of waste transfer notes. All businesses must legally keep a copy of these waste transfer notes for a minimum of two years. Failure to produce these waste transfer notes can result in a £300 fixed penalty notice or £180 if paid within 10 days of the fine being issued.

There are 21 recycling centres in Greater Manchester where residents can take their waste free of charge for disposal. Details: https://www.bury.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=10838