A hundred fly-tippers have been hit with fines in a single month, as Lambeth steps up its assault on illegal dumping.

Lambeth residents are infuriated by fly tipping– bulky objects like old furniture and excess rubbish bags dumped in their streets – and are helping catch those responsible by providing information and evidence through Lambeth’s online reporting system – https://www.lambeth.gov.uk/forms/report-dumped-rubbish-form?utm_source=Sign-Up.to&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=17118-299932-theBALANCE+Issue+12%3A+October+2015

Lambeth recently launched a Not on our streets campaign, warning residents that anti-social behaviour such as fly tipping is completely unacceptable in Lambeth and would be met with instant fines.

But the message that illegal dumping is totally unacceptable has been backed up by a new team of enforcement officers who began work at the start of September. They are tasked specifically with investigating residential fly tips in the borough and fining those responsible. By October 3, the enforcement officers had gathered evidence to hand out 103 Fixed Penalty Notices of £80 (reduced to £50 if paid within 10 days).

Cabinet member for Environment & Sustainability, Cllr Jennifer Brathwaite, said: “These people are dumping rubbish where they shouldn’t be – ruining our environment and infuriating residents. We will simply not tolerate their behaviour.

“A bulky waste collection service is available from the council. Residents should not simply leave old furniture out on the street; that is fly tipping and they will be fined.”

Spitting? Littering? Dog-fouling? Not on OUR streets!

For some, it means nuisance neighbours, graffiti or rowdy children in the street.  But anti-social behaviour can also include the fouling of our streets through random acts of carelessness and neglect, like spitting, fly-tipping or even urination.

Our Environmental Crime Scrutiny Commission found that “enviro-crimes” like these were on the rise and had become one of the top concerns of Lambeth residents. The Commission found that the full cost of Lambeth’s street cleansing service in 2013/14 was over £7 million – much of it costs associated with litter, fly-tipping and dog-fouling. We need to control these costs and keep our streets clean – in everyone’s insterests. The Council has introduced stiff financial penalties for offenders – and it is asking all residents to ‘Do the Right Thing’ and help keep the streets clean for everyone.

Litter has been described as “the most significant low-level environmental crime affecting the UK”, and clearing it up costs councils in England over £700 million every year. Last year, a survey by Keep Britain Tidy on behalf of the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), showed that those who live in the poorest places in England tend to have the dirtiest streets. Our own State of the Borough report points out that Lambeth is ranked as the 8th most deprived borough in London and the 14th most deprived in England.

But Lambeth residents will not tolerate “enviro-crime” on our streets. Under new powers introduced last year, officers can issue fines for anybody in Lambeth seen damaging the environment by spitting or urinating in the street, failing to clear up after their dog, fly-tipping or littering. The Council is now warning people that anti-social behaviour on the borough’s streets will be met with on-the-spot fines of up to £80.

Lambeth’s cabinet member for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Jennifer Brathwaite, said: “Our ‘ Do the Right Thing’ campaign encourages residents to act in a responsible way to help make Lambeth a clean, pleasant and safe place to live a work.

“While the majority of residents already do this, a small minority are damaging the borough, polluting the streets, causing offence and costing the council valuable resources. We are now saying; ‘Not on our streets’.

“These on-the-spot fines will make offenders think twice about doing it again and protect our streets for our responsible residents.”

Last year Lambeth’s council officers issued nearly a thousand Fixed Penalty Notices for antisocial behaviour, with almost half of those for littering. In October, the Council issued its first FPN for spitting under current anti-littering legislation, resulting in a £120 fine after the case went to court.