What is Fly-Tipping?
Fly-tipping is the act of illegally dumping waste in an unauthorised area. Typically places where those who partake in the illegal act, think (hope) they won’t get caught doing it, like the countryside or on the side of quiet roads. Rather than using authorised waste removal services, fly-tipping chancers will leave their rubbish anywhere they think they can get away with it.
What is wrong with it?
As well as ruining the appearance of the landscape of wherever the waste is dumped, fly-tipping can pose as a serious threat to both humans and wildlife. This is due to a number of reasons, especially as the substances and material that the rubbish is made up of could potentially be extremely harmful to the environment. Household waste could contain chemicals that have the potential to kill animals if ingested, or cause suffocation and strangulation if they get caught up in it. If the object is large enough, it could cause danger to human life, as if an object falls into the middle of a road, it could cause an obstruction, or if the rubbish is dumped near a child’s play area, it could also cause suffocation and strangulation.
Fly-tipping’s threat to the planet
It may seem obvious, but dumping rubbish in an unauthorised area can have a serious negative impact on the planet and its ecosystems. Not only is it a very obvious threat the livelihood of multiple species, but it also results in the absorption of toxins through soil and greenery, which prevents growth and poisons plants, and eventually insects and creatures.
Waste also attracts disease-carrying animals to the area, such as rats and fleas, that can cause serious health issues to other animals and be a nuisance and health threat to humans. Simply put, fly-tipping is not just unpleasant to behold, it is a real and serious danger to the environment and human and animal life.
The effect on the economy
As well as undermining the work of legitimate waste removal businesses, the cost of fly-tipping is greater estimated cost of councils in the UK is £4 million a month, as reported by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Of course, tax-payers fund the council budget, so in real terms, fly-tipping is also having a major financial impact on humans as well, especially as this money could be going to much more worthwhile causes for councils and communities. The problem has got so bad that there’s now a 24-hour hotline for individuals effected by fly-tipping, and the act of the fly-tipping can carry up to a 5-year jail sentence or unlimited fine.
A lot of people who fly-tip don’t realise the magnitude of their actions, and a lot of the time don’t understand what they’re doing is wrong. To avoid confusion, use our trusted and professional skip hire service for all your waste removal needs.