Council seeks public's help to identify fly tippers

Council bosses are appealing for help to trace fly tippers who dumped waste on the banks of the River Tyne.
Illegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riversideIllegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riverside
Illegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riverside

A huge amount of rubbish, including kitchen worktops and cupboards, was discovered at Hebburn Marina by a member of South Tyneside Homes’ Handy Estates team carrying out inspections on Sunday morning.

The waste was dumped sometime on Saturday and the council is seeking information about the culprits.

Illegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riversideIllegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riverside
Illegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riverside
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Coun Moira Smith, lead member for area management and community safety, said: “Fly tipping is a selfish crime and is totally unacceptable.

“Incidents like this spoil our natural environment and show a complete disregard for local communities and residents.

“There is no excuse for people not to dispose of their rubbish properly.

“There are significant costs involved in clearing and investigating this type of illegal disposal of waste which places a burden on the finances of the council and ultimately the taxpayer.”

Councillor Moira SmithCouncillor Moira Smith
Councillor Moira Smith
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She added: “This incident alone will cost around £1,000 to clean up, without any future enforcement costs.

“I’d ask anyone who has any information about this incident to contact the council in confidence and help us bring the offenders to justice.

“While this is a quiet area, someone may have been out walking their dog or horse riding and we’d appeal for their help.”

Hebburn resident John Welsh, 76, called the fly tipping ‘disgraceful.’

Illegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riversideIllegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riverside
Illegal rubbish dumping at Hebburn marina riverside
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He said: “The mess there is absolutely disgraceful. It is such a beautiful area down there so I was really angry when I saw it on Saturday afternoon.

“Fly tipping like this has happened about six times now.”

New legislation came into force earlier this year which allows councils to issue an on-the-spot penalty of between £150 and £400 to people caught low level fly tipping.

Over the past 10 years there has been a 60% reduction in fly tipping incidents but South Tyneside Council still spends £2.2 million a year keeping the borough tidy.

Anyone with any information is asked to call the council’s Customer Contact Centre on 0191 427 7000.