LOCAL towns are now paying out more to combat flytipping after signing service delegation agreements with Wiltshire Council, a Trowbridge businessman and councillor claims.

Cllr Edward Kirk, whose family runs two businesses, says Trowbridge alone has spent more than £820 picking up items dumped on pavements and roads in the past month alone.

He claims the town council has been tasked with removing more than 20 items dumped by residents but lacks the enforcement powers to recoup the cost through fines.

The items left by flytippers across Trowbridge in the last month include a fridge, a fridge-freezer, six sofas, a washing machine and fence panels.

They were all dumped across the town between March 14 and April 4, with the biggest wards for flytipping being Adcroft, Lambrok and Central.

Cllr Kirk said: “So far, that brings last month’s flytipping charges to £822.20.

“Trowbridge residents and those of other towns are picking up the cost of this flytipping in their areas, as Wiltshire Council have absolved themselves of any responsibility.”

Wiltshire Council has transferred responsibility to town councils for removing the rubbish dumped on highways and on amenity land.

Those councils that have agreed to take on this responsibility through service delegation agreements with Wiltshire Council include Chippenham, Devizes and Trowbridge.

“There is no requirement for these town councils to report flytipping to Wiltshire Council and they will only probably do so in the unlikely event that there is some evidence that can lead to a prosecution.”

In the meantime, Wiltshire Council has boasted that its campaign targeting flytippers is succeeding with large fines for those caught and successfully prosecuted.

Wiltshire Council says it has successfully managed to reduce flytipping thanks to a new information campaign and well-publicised prosecutions.

The council was recently presented with The Environmental Campaign of the Year Award by Keep Britain Tidy for its 'We're Targeting Flytippers' (or WTF) campaign.

Between 2019 and 2020 there were more than 2,800 recorded flytipping incidents in Wiltshire, that rocketed to more than 3,700 during lockdown.

The county says Wiltshire is one of the authorities that has managed to reduce incidents thanks to active campaigning, with recorded incidents now down to around 2,600.

Wiltshire Council said it spends £2 million a year picking up litter and flytipped waste, and more disposing of the rubbish properly.

But Cllr Kirk added: “The flytipping campaign has been excellent, but can Wiltshire Council really claim that flytipping has been reduced?”

Cllr Nick Holder, Wiltshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways, Street Scene and Flooding, said: “We have a zero tolerance to illegally deposited waste, and we have increased our spending on fly-tipping enforcement by £250,000 this financial year.  Enforcement action is taken against every offender where evidence is available. 

“We provide Wiltshire householders with several free-of-charge disposal routes for their waste, including kerbside collections of waste and recycling, and the opportunity to use our network of household recycling centres.  There is no excuse for fly-tipping or littering.

“In April 2023, following a service delegation agreement, Trowbridge Town Council took over the responsibility for services such as the clearance of fly-tipping and litter within their agreed areas.

"Service Delegation agreements are designed to enable the local community to have more say in how their services are run.

“However, we will continue to enforce fly tipping offences in Trowbridge where evidence is available, to limit the collection costs to the town council. 

“Residents can report fly tipping online by visiting www.wiltshire.gov.uk/mywiltshire-online-reporting or by calling 0300 456 0100.”