SEPA sees success due to drop in dumb dumpers
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A campaign to highlight the dangers of illegal tyre disposal in
Glasgow and Lanarkshire has proved to be a big success, with a
significant drop in the number of tyres being dumped in the
area.
During the course of the operation, in October last year,
officers from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)
engaged with over 400 businesses to remind them of their duties and
responsibilities, including that they must take all reasonable
steps to keep waste tyres safe and secure and dispose of them to
the appropriate person or company.
Alastair Dewart, SEPA Area Manager, said:
"The focus of this campaign was to make producers aware of their
responsibilities with respect to proper management of waste tyres,
thus reducing the supply of waste tyres to illegal waste carriers
and disrupting their operations.
"North Lanarkshire Council's environmental protection department
collected 75 tonnes of flytipped tyres in 2008/09. However, in
2009/10 this dropped to 57 tonnes, a fall of 25%, demonstrating
that this has been a really successful project.
"We were pleased that a large number of sites had appropriate
procedures in place to deal with waste tyres, but advisory or
warning letters were issued for inadequate tyre disposal practices
and other environmental issues at some sites."
Figures from the Scottish Flytipping Forum's Fly capture
database show that significantly fewer tyres were deposited
illegally across Scotland in 2009/10 than in 2008/09. This was
largely due to this campaign and a similar one conducted in West
Lothian. As well as a reduction in the illegal dumping of tyres
there has been an increase in the number of new customers coming
through the gates of legitimate disposal businesses.
Carole Wilson, Development Manager for Keep Scotland Beautiful,
said:
"We are delighted that SEPA has undertaken this work to deal
with the very real blight of waste tyres in our towns and
countryside.
"The Scottish Flytipping Forum reports on the figures collected
through the Flycapture Database. These figures are supplied
by many of the Scottish local authorities and are the best
indicator available to show the extent of flytipping across the
country. It is wonderful that the figures show a dramatic decrease
in the number of incidents of dumped tyres having to be cleared at
the taxpayers expense, from 1880 incidents last year to 550 this
year."
Mr Dewart added:
"Businesses dealing with waste tyres must fully understand their
roles and responsibilities under the legislation, and abide by
them, in order to ensure the protection of Scotland's environment
for the benefit of all our citizens.
"Illegally dumped waste tyres are a blight on the landscape,
creating micro environments with subsequent insect and rodent
infestations. However, they also present a significant fire risk
and when set alight produce a toxic cocktail of pollutants that can
seriously impact water courses, ground water, land and air quality
and can lead to public health issues. They are difficult and
expensive to remove, and the associated fires expensive to
extinguish, a cost normally borne by the public purse.
Additionally, legitimate tyre disposal companies find themselves
operating at a serious economic disadvantage to the illegal
collection companies."
More information on fly-tipping and the legislation concerning
it is available at www.sepa.org.uk/waste/waste_regulation/fly-tipping.aspx
Further advice and guidance can be obtained by contacting your
local SEPA office, where staff will be able to advise fully on the
regulations, or our 24 hour Communications Centre on 01738 448414.
Details of SEPA's offices are available at www.sepa.org.uk/about_us/contacting_sepa/regional_offices.aspx
Ends
Fly-tipped tyres at Myreside Street, Glasgow.
Illegally dumped tyres in Bargeddie, Lanarkshire.