Fly-Tipping
A Typical Fly-tip - Horton Kirby, Kent
Can We Do More? "Over a million incidents of fly-tipping are reported every year and three-quarters of that is household waste. Homeowners themselves, or dodgy waste-removal companies who don't want to pay to dispose of waste legitimately." (BBC SAS: Catching The Criminals S1E6). Are we doing enough? Or can we do more?
Cleaning Up! Fly-tipping is blighting our countryside. It's always been going on, to a degree, but of late, it's got really bad. Why? Because it's so easy! It's so easy, and so easy to get away with, that it's now become properly organised by criminals. Yes, organised criminals, who are in fact, cleaning up! An ironic phrase indeed!
Dirty Deed! The criminals are undoubtedly more organised in their perpetrating of the dirty deed than the authorities are in preventing them from doing it. The authorities seem to be absolutely ineffectual. Maybe they are inept, maybe just uncaring. Perhaps they have the will, but don't know what to do. Maybe they are just under-resourced. Whatever the case, the bottom line for the general public is the same. Mess everywhere and a significant bill for the taxpayer to get it cleaned up! In fact, much of it doesn't get cleaned up. It just sits there!
Even Worse! Even worse, if it happens on your farm, or other private land, as the authorities wash their hands of any responsibility, or accountability, the land owner has to foot the bill for the cleanup. And of course, as its unregulated waste, and those responsible are bit short on morals, some of the waste is not at all healthy for the environment, or the water table.
Simple Solution? There is a simple solution. Fly-tipping is a crime, and it's about time it was treated as such. Each new fly-tipping location should be treated as a crime scene, because that's what it is! Therefore, get CSI in to investigate and swab for DNA. Trace it back to the owners and perpetrators, find out who is responsible and lock them up for ten years. Once people know that's what's going to happen and that's where they're going, it will stop overnight!