Rural crime team tackles waste crime and fly tipping

Cheshire Constabulary’s Rural Crime Team has joined forces with partner agencies to tackle large-scale waste crime and fly tipping within the west of the county.

On Tuesday 29th April, officers from the Rural Crime Team worked with other teams from across the force, including the Motorcycle Unit, Special Constabulary and BEAT teams, to tackle waste crime in Chester and surrounding areas.

Officers also worked alongside partner agencies. These included the Environment Agency, Cheshire West and Chester Council waste enforcement officers and the National Construction and Agricultural Theft Team (NCATT) to ensure waste carriers were complying with regulations.

Across the course of the day, there were the following results:

• Dozens of commercial and waste carrier vehicles stopped and checked to ensure they were not in breach of any regulations
• One vehicle seized for having no insurance
• One vehicle given a prohibition notice for being in a dangerous condition
• Numerous TORS (traffic offence reports) issues for an array of offences, including illegal tyres and insecure loads
• A number of vehicles weighed to ensure they were complying with weight regulations
• Enforcement action by both Chester West and Chester Council waste enforcement officers and the Environment Agency

Constable Peter Moss said:

“Some people may believe that fly tipping does not harm anyone, however this is far from the truth. Not only does it cause a blight on our landscape, but it also costs taxpayers thousands of pounds to clear up.

“We are working closely with the local authority and partner agencies to tackle this issue and make Cheshire West a hostile environment for those involved in the movement of illegal waste.

“As part of our ongoing efforts to both prevent people from committing waste crime and hold those who do to account we also need support from residents. If you need to dispose of any waste, ensure that you use a legitimate waste removal company and always ask to see their licence.

“Some people can claim to have a licence to get rid of waste but have no intention of doing things correctly, often charging bargain prices to get rid of your rubbish, only for it to end up dumped somewhere it should not be. If the waste is tracked down to you, what started off as a good deal could end up as a hefty fine, even if you weren’t the one who dumped the waste.

“We will continue these joint days of action in the future, as we remain committed on tackling this issue and ensuring our landscapes do not become ruined by waste crime.”