'It is unacceptable and has to stop': Mansfield resident's anger at 'regular' fly-tipping problem

Bill Taylor, who lives on Salisbury Road, walks to the newsagents on Howard Road every day. On his way he sees black bags, furniture and white goods dumped on nearby Broomhill Lane.

Although it is cleaned up by the council, the rubbish mounts up every day.

"The fly-tipping is synonymous with that area and goes on on a very regular basis,” Bill said.

“Rarely does a day go by when there is not something new dumped in this position. People use that place to dump anything that they wish.

"It is not unusual to see broken furniture and bin bags. It is not acceptable and it has to stop. It never used to be like this.

"The local authority are picking it up and clearing it away, and that must be costing and arm and a leg. As a ratepayer I am not happy about that.

"It is a health hazard as well. It only takes a matter of days before foxes and rats will start to turn up. And this is only a few hundred yards from the school.”

Bill said that he would like to see people prosecuted for the fly-tipping.

"Whether it can be done with the use of covert cameras to catch the people doing it, I don’t know,” he said. “But if there are prosecutions then I think the problem would be controlled.”

A spokesperson for Mansfield District Council said that there had been an increase in fly-tipping incidents across the district since lockdown.

Over the past few months, ten Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) ranging from £75 to £200, depending on the severity of the incident, have been issued for fly-tipping.

Three of these relate to incidents on Broomhill Lane and the surrounding area. Several more cases are being investigated.

Cllr Amanda Fisher, Portfolio Holder for Safer Communities and Wellbeing, said: "No one likes to see fly-tipping, which is an expensive blot on our landscape. Every resident and business has a duty to ensure that their waste is disposed of responsibly.

“This council takes the problem of fly-tipping very seriously and we will always take enforcement action wherever possible.”

If you are paying for your waste to be taken away, it is your responsibility to check that the person disposing of your waste has a waste carrier's licence. This can be done on the Environment Agency’s website. If you don't check and your waste ends up being dumped, it could be you who ends up with a criminal record for fly-tipping.

The council has six redeployable cameras, which can be considered for use where appropriate and in conjunction with other investigation methods.

You can help keep Mansfield clean by booking a bulky waste collection by calling 01623 463463 or reporting fly-tipping online at www.mansfield.gov.uk/flytipping.