Two tons of waste left blocking Petworth road in ‘serious’ flytipping incident

Around two tons of commercial construction waste was left blocking a road in Petworth at the end of last month.
The flytippped wasteThe flytippped waste
The flytippped waste

Chichester District Council was alerted to the incident in Wakestone Lane, off the A272 at Petworth, on Sunday 31 May and a team sent to clear it.

Councillor Penny Plant, Cabinet Member for Environment and Contract Services at Chichester District Council, said: “This was a particularly nasty incident and an example of a resident who has probably paid a private company in good faith to have this waste removed.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“That company has then taken a conscious – and criminal – decision to dump this in a quiet area of our beautiful countryside.

The flytippped wasteThe flytippped waste
The flytippped waste

“From the type and amount of material we found, we know that this is not the sort of waste that would come through the normal household waste and recycling centres – it would need to be taken to a dedicated commercial waste handling station.

“Only a commercial enterprise could have been responsible for this and they would have used a flat-bed transit type vehicle to transport it.

“We are appealing to anyone who has had work done recently who may recognise some of the material that has been dumped.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Fly tipping is a criminal activity and any evidence we receive will be investigated by our Environmental Health Team.”

The flytippped wasteThe flytippped waste
The flytippped waste

Chichester District Council is reminding residents to ensure that whoever they employ or ask to remove and dispose of the excess waste from their property is licensed as a waste carrier with the Environment Agency.

By law, the householder is responsible for their waste.

This is known as ‘duty of care’, and means that whether they have finished a DIY project; been clearing out unwanted household items; or, have been busy sprucing up their garden, it is down to the householder to make sure that their waste is disposed of safely and legally.

If someone removes waste on your behalf, it’s vital that you use a licensed waste carrier and ask for a waste transfer note as evidence.

The flytippped wasteThe flytippped waste
The flytippped waste
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

If you don’t do this, and your waste is fly tipped, you could be held responsible.

This could result in a prosecution and you could face a fine.

The council gave the following top tips to follow before asking someone to remove waste:

– Avoid using a company / individual if they don’t have a licence

The flytippped wasteThe flytippped waste
The flytippped waste
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

– Get their waste carrier number from the Environment Agency https://environment.data.gov.uk/public-register/view/search-waste-carriers-brokers or call 03708 506506

– Ask to see their waste carrier licence

– Insist on them providing a waste transfer note and receipt

– Note their vehicle registration number

– Speak to them and ask what will happen to your waste

For more information about fly tipping, visit the council’s website here.

The flytippped wasteThe flytippped waste
The flytippped waste

A message from the Editor, Gary Shipton:

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news, I am asking you to please purchase a copy of our newspapers.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspapers.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

Stay safe, and best wishes.