Rushcliffe is one the cleanest and greenest parts of Nottinghamshire and we are determined to keep it that way. Every year we spend a considerable amount of money cleaning up after the minority of people who commit fly-tipping.

Fly-tipping is the illegal deposit of waste on any land. This includes any unwanted material produced by a household or business including general mixed waste, garden waste, construction waste, soil, furniture and liquids. In an effort to reduce the number of fly-tipping incidences, the Council provides a special refuse collection for large items.

Fly-tipping is a criminal offence. Anyone, including householders, caught fly-tipping can be prosecuted under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, with the maximum penalty being a £50,000 fine and/or twelve months imprisonment. The Borough Council will prosecute anyone caught fly-tipping.

Depositing waste on the ground outside the gates of a Household Waste Recycling Centre, whether the site is open or closed, is legally defined as fly-tipping. People behaving in this manner can expect to have enforcement action instigated against them.

Report fly-tipping

If the fly-tipping is on the public highway or public land, tell us: report flytipping using our online form, or by contacting the Streetwise team by phone, fax, email or post. We will investigate the incident and arrange for the waste to be cleared.

If the fly tipping is outside a Household Waste Recycling Centre contact Nottinghamshire County Council - the telephone number for their Waste Hotline is 0115 977 2019. If you believe the fly tipping to be causing pollution contact the Environment Agency hotline on 0800 807 060. Guidance for landowners, businesses and members of the public can be found on the Environment Agency website.

If you discover fly-tipped waste after the tippers have left, please follow these simple guidelines:

• Do not touch the waste: fly-tipped waste can be dangerous - it may contain syringes, broken glass, asbestos, toxic chemicals or other hazardous substances.
• Visually inspect the waste: try to determine what the waste consists of and how much there is.
• Take note of its exact location: and also, whether it is in or near water.
• Do not disturb the site: there may be evidence that could help identify the culprits and lead to their prosecution.

If you see someone fly-tipping, try to make a note of:

• The day, date and time you saw the tipping.
• What you saw: how many people were flytipping and what they looked like; what they were actually doing; any vehicles involved - their make, colour and registration number.
• Where were you when you saw the flytipping: what kind of view you had; how far away you were; weather and light conditions.
• What was tipped: what it looked like; how much of it there was.

Prosecutions

The Council treats this problem very seriously and will prosecute anyone caught fly-tipping waste.

Fly-tipping is often associated with dumping waste from vehicles. In this case the person controlling the use of the vehicle can also be prosecuted, which means that it is possible for a prosecution to occur when only the vehicle, not the driver, is identifiable.

The Police also have the powers to seize vehicles used for fly-tipping.

Monitoring fly-tipping

Flycapture, the National Fly-tipping Database, came into operation in April 2004
This is a web-based database for England and Wales, which is being created to help local authorities and the Environment Agency tackle fly-tipping.

Operated and updated by the Environment Agency on behalf of the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Flycapture is a tool designed to help authorities improve their intelligence on fly tipping and focus resources on fly tipping hotspots.