How councils in Corby, East Northants, Kettering and Wellingborough compare at catching fly-tippers

The local authority fined 18 individuals and businesses for illegally dumping rubbish in 2017, having received 535 reports of flytipping.

In comparison, eight have been prosecuted out of 1,537 incidents covered by Kettering Council, and six have been caught from 1,379 incidents in Corby.

An East Northants Council spokesman said: “There is no excuse for fly-tipping and we take any offence very seriously.

“We spend at least £20,000 every year on clearing the big fly-tips alone and we will continue to take action against individuals found to illegally dump rubbish in our countryside and on our streets.

“Although officers use surveillance cameras to catch fly-tippers, we also rely on local people telling us when they see a person or business illegally dumping waste.

“We appreciate everybody’s help in fighting fly-tipping to help keep the district a clean and safe place to live, work and play in.”

In April a man who fly-tipped rubbish on the A427 near Upper Benefield was ordered to pay more than £700.

In October a woman was made to pay £355 after dumping furniture and waste in Rushden’s Station Road car park.

And in November a woman who left rubbish next to a bin in Rushden was fined more than £700.

Wellingborough Council received 718 reports of fly-tipping but only one person was issued with a fixed penalty notice.

Corby Council broke down its figures, requested under the Freedom of Information Act, into the size of each incident.

There were 23 incidents where the fly-tip was so big that it took a tipper lorry to collect it.

A spokesman for Kettering Council, which has seen the most fly-tipping incidents this year, said: “Kettering Council takes an intelligence-based approach to enforcement and will investigate fly-tips where possible, taking prosecutions against individuals or businesses if sufficient evidence is available.

“Advice and education are provided where appropriate.”

Below are the five items fly-tipped most often in each area, disregarding items that fall under ‘other’.

CORBY:

1 - White goods (144)

2 - Black household bags (111)

3 - Green waste (18)

4 - Tyres (13)

5 - Black commercial bags (11)

EAST NORTHANTS:

1 - Black household bags (86)

2 - Green waste (62)

3 - Tyres (41)

4 - White goods (30)

5 - Construction/excavation (20)

KETTERING:

1 - Furniture (302)

2 - Construction/excavation (161)

3 - White goods (118)

4 - Mattresses (106)

5 - Black household bags (104)

WELLINGBOROUGH:

1 - Black household bags (70)

2 - Construction/demolition (51)

3 - White goods (43)

4 - Green waste (19)

5 - Tyres (15)

Across the north of the county there were 30 incidents where asbestos was fly-tipped.

East Northants Council was the only authority to record incidents of animal carcass fly-tipping, with six in 2017.