Bradford Council has spent £320,000 in the last year clearing up piles of rubbish left strewn across the district by fly-tippers, it has been revealed.

Today, campaigners urged people to take more responsibility for their streets at a time when local authorities are having to make major budget cuts.

A saving of £40,000 was made in the recent Council budget by removing the fly-tipping team.

But the Council has pledged that illegal fly-tipping will continue to be dealt with by its Neighbourhood Services team.

Steve Hartley, assistant director at the Neighbourhood Service, said: “The Council decided to remove the dedicated fly-tipping team based in Bradford.

“But fly-tipping problems and clearance will continue to be dealt with by the Neighbourhood Services team who have control of the ward-based clean teams. The Council has a clear enforcement policy in illegal fly-tipping and is committed to the prosecution of all offenders where they can be identified.”

The Council has revealed that the estimated cost of the collection and disposal of fly-tipped material over the last 12 months was £320,000.

In the same period, the Environmental Enforcement Team prosecuted 14 people, or companies.

Helen Bingham, of Keep Britain Tidy, said: “According to Defra, it costs local authorities an estimated £45.8 million a year to clear up rubbish that is fly-tipped across England and, at a time when councils are facing budget cuts, this figure is totally unacceptable.

“Sixty three per cent of fly-tipping incidents involve household waste and nearly 947,000 fly-tipping incidents were dealt with by local authorities in England in 2009/10. Fly-tipping looks terrible and is a blot on the landscape. There is nothing more unsightly than dumped furniture and bin bags along our roadsides.

“There is no excuse for fly-tipping. People need to dispose of their waste responsibly.”

And a Campaign to Protect Rural England spokesman said: “We know it’s costing councils more and more each year to clean up fly-tipping, particularly given budget cuts.

“What we need is a joined-up government, local government and industry strategy to tackle litter and fly tipping at the root, which means stopping people dropping it and prosecuting all those found responsible.

“There are several messages here – everyone is responsible and needs to take responsibility for littering, just as councils need to spend money cleaning it up. Those routinely dropping litter are costing us all money each year.”

A West Yorkshire Fire Service spokesman said crews dealt with 1,391 deliberate secondary fires, which includes rubbish piled up on streets, from April 2010 to February.

The spokesman said: “Fly tipping is illegal and it provides an opportunity for arsonists to set fires. We would advise people to dispose of their rubbish responsibly and if they have any issues, contact the local authority.”

  • Read the full story in Tuesday's T&A