Recent incidences of fly-tipping on farms in north and east Hertfordshire meant they were “blighted by tonnes of rubbish”, according to the police and crime commissioner for Hertfordshire, David Lloyd.
Four farmers affected by the fly-tipping had the rubbish cleared up for free using money from Lloyd’s £20,000 annual fly-tipping fund.
The sites, in Barley, Buntingford, Little Berkhamsted and Puckeridge, used the scheme to cover the £10,600 cost of clearing the rubbish, which mainly consisted of shredded household waste.
Hertfordshire Constabulary has been made aware of the tips and an investigation is being led by the Environment Agency.
In one of the incidents damage was caused to gain entry to the site and the landowners are looking at target hardening methods to stop further offences taking place.
‘Substantial costs for farmers’
Hertfordshire police and crime commissioner David Lloyd said: “All 10 district and borough councils across Herts have joined the scheme. This shows how committed all parties are to tackling fly-tipping.
“Fly-tipping is one of the crimes I hear about most from the public. It blights the countryside and causes substantial costs for farmers and landowners to clear the waste, and poses a danger to road users, livestock and wildlife. It spoils the enjoyment of the countryside for all.
“I do not believe it is fair that farmers and landowners are left to pick up a bill, which can run in to thousands of pounds, because someone else has fly tipped on their property.”
The fly-tipping fund was set up by Lloyd in 2018 and farmers or green space landowners can qualify for funding if they prove they already have a waste disposal contract in place with an authorised collection firm.
The scheme is part of the countywide multi-agency and multi- channel campaign being run by the Hertfordshire Fly-Tipping Group – #SCRAPflytipping.
