Issue - meetings

The Scrutiny Officer presented the completed report for the recent Review of the Council’s Approach to Environmental Despoilment Education and Enforcement to the Committee.

The Committee had agreed to undertake a review of the Council’s approach to environmental despoilment education and enforcement, as part of its 2024/25 Work Programme.

The issue was initially raised due to concerns about environmental despoilment in the District, including fly-tipping, littering, and dog fouling, which not only degraded the aesthetic value of the District but also posed significant risks to public health, safety, and local biodiversity.

In May 2025, the Environment Secretary announced further measures to tackle waste crime, including a review of local authority vehicle seizure powers to better support local authorities in dealing with fly-tipping.

Reforms to the waste carriers, brokers and dealers regime, as well as tighter controls on waste permit exemptions, would provide local authorities and the Environment Agency the stronger tools needed to crack down on illegal waste activity.

At the local level, the District faced unique challenges - despite its natural beauty and rich heritage, the District had struggled with persistent environmental despoilment, especially when compared to neighbouring areas.

This issue had significant implications for the well-being of local communities,

impacting both the physical environment and public perception of the area.

The prevalence of environmental despoilment not only undermined residents'  quality of life but also detracted from the District’s appeal to visitors and potential investors.

Furthermore, environmental despoilment in shared public spaces could harm wildlife, pose hazards to public health and incur high costs for clean-up efforts.

This was a critical issue for the Council, as it aligned with both local priorities (incl. creating safer, cleaner neighbourhoods) and national objectives focused on waste reduction and environmental sustainability.

The aims of the review were:

·       That the Council reduced fly-tipping, littering and dog fouling to improve the aesthetical value of the District, protect local wildlife and reduce the cost of dealing with the unauthorised illegal depositing of waste by assessing the service’s effectiveness in tackling environmental despoilment; and,

·       That the Council became an excellent authority at ‘keeping the District clean’ rather than ‘cleaning the District’.

The objectives agreed were:

1.     Understand what Environmental Despoilment involved (fly tipping, littering and dog fouling), the Council’s statutory duty and enforcement powers, and policies available to the Council;

2.     Analyse the current data of incidents of environmental despoilment across the District;

3.     Review the current arrangements undertaken by the Enforcement Team, Streetscene Services and Environmental Health to reduce or prevent Environmental Despoilment;

4.     Improve public information / education on environmental despoilment; and,

5.     Identify benchmarking opportunities and areas for improvement; ensure there was a clear strategy of enforcement action to improve the quality of the environment across the District.

The key issues identified for investigation included:

·       Enforcement powers of the Council;

·       Types of land covered by the Council’s statutory duties (Agricultural, Back Alley, Commercial/Industrial, Council, Footpath/Bridleway, Highway, Private Land, Railway, Watercourse);

·       Public information and education;

·       Dog Fouling;

·       Fly Tipping; and,

·       Litter.

The Committee had put  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8