I now understand fly tippers - rant warning!

[aiwblam]

Previously, I would have said that fly tippers were simply scummy people who did not care about the environment or community. Having been to our local tip this morning, I now understand why people fly tip and I think we are going to see astronomical levels of it.

I went to the tip to dispose of a 10yo computer and monitor, some assorted metal bits and pieces (mainly from broken stuff, but I was trying to keep the metal out of landfill to, you know, save the environment) and a sheet of wood which we used to use as a dog guard. Nothing difficult, standard stuff that people dispose of.

Our tip is open under "emergency" usage. This has been the case since covid. Apparently residents are supposed to just "store" their litter and only visit the tip if they can't. Well, we were tripping over this stuff on our narrow landing and with kids, dog and us so I decided to tip it.

I queued for 90 mins. Upon entering the hallowed gates, you are interrogated by the Gestapo. You are directed to a bay in which you must park, regardless of what kind of stuff you have to dump and the relevant bin being at the other end of the tip. Several of the bins are pay bins, ferociously guarded. A woman stepped out of a line to recycle some plastic and was screamed at.

The asbestos bin is a pay bin, along with about 6 others. Council, you fucking idiots. People are bagging asbestos up and dumping it in the free "non recyclable" bin. In fact, anything that belongs in a pay bin is being bagged up and dumped in non recyclable. Not by me, but it's pretty bloody obvious what's going on. The pay bins look so clean and empty. The tip opens short hours and is closed Weds and Thurs. 17,000 people live in the catchment area of this tip.

Our landfill bins are collected fortnightly and woe betide anyone who has their bin open even a bloody crack. Our recycling is supposed to be weekly but they often leave behind one category, which we are again instructed to "store".

This is what happens when councils hand over a functioning council tip to a private company who cut costs in any way they can. Closures, hour cuts, pay bins.

This is an area with a lot of woodland around. People go to the woods at night and tip the contents of their vehicle out into the woods. Now I know why and I don't even think they are particularly bad people. I think they are people who are doing it out of necessity as there is no reasonable way to get rid of their litter. I was out for a total of 2 hours. Who can afford to waste time like that? I needed the bloody toilet and got pins and needles in my leg.

Why can't councils see why stuff is fly tipped everywhere? Ours is whining about spending record amounts to clean it up. Erm...do you not see cause and effect?

End of rant

Totally agree with you op. It’s absolutely ridiculous how these things are managed and it’s easy to understand why people fly tip.

Where I use to live councils would do inorganic collections, go around and collect waste like this every 2 years. People could place all their rubbish outside their houses, old washing machines, beds fridges, it would all be collected. People from other areas would use the opportunity to get rid of stuff and add to the piles. As the areas due a collection would be advertised. But there were also people who would go round with vans and take things before the council did. I remember putting an old rusty bbq out, before I brought a second load of stuff out 2 guys with a van we’re taking the bbq away. They ended up emptying the entire garage for me, they took what they wanted and put the rest on the road for me. It was well organised and there were rules, stuff couldn’t be put out before a certain day, I can’t remember the exact rules but I think it was 2-3 days before collection and rules around blocking foot paths etc.

Oh, When I lived in the states they had 'big garbage day' once a year - so you looked in advance at when it was happening in posh areas and you could drive around a score all kinds of cool stuff - new sofas, tables, etc etc.

I though ours was bad!

Ours is actually ok in comparison.

But last visit I was stood at zebra crossing with an old computer monitor in my hand to cross to the only thing over there - the container for monitors. When I was yelled at "where are you going - that's for computer monitors and TVs" I just rolled my eyes and carried on.

Then I walked and out my already flattened cardboard into the cardboard bin. Bare in mind it had a barrier so only flag cardboard can be posted through when a voice bellows "you MUST flatten cardboard before it goes in the bin". So out I pull it and ask how I should flatten it. "It's fine" was the reply.

I didn't get any response to "so why are you yelling at me across the tip in front of everyone to do something I've already done correctly?"

So I challenged further "would you do the same to a man?"

I was blanked and ignored.

But that actually was a blessing in disguise

Agree completely.

Fly tipping is definitely on the rise around here and it was already bad.

In our area it is about 2 months wait for large item collection by the Council. So people simply dump on the pavements and it is collected with 48 hours.

Although I hit the jackpot this morning as had a microwave I was storing until I needed to do another run. And the scrap metal man came bellowing down the street.

The reference to the Gestapo is extremely offensive, it was holocaust memorial Day yesterday. And fly tipping is the behaviour of scum. If someone has been rude to you, complain via the proper route.

First world problems in an entitled society.

Same round here op. Although if you leave white goods/microwaves/ ovens etc outside they’re normally gone pretty quickly ( taken by certain people for scrap metal)
Anything that burns is burnt here - anything

You have to book the slot for the tip - if you’re lucky and you need a permit which is on your car windscreen from the council to make sure you go to the ‘correct’ tip - if you go to the ‘wrong one’ they won’t let you in - even if the other tip is the only one who takes your type of rubbish
Our grey bin has been replaced by a bin 1/3 the size -its crazy
And you pay for the green bin as extra to council tax

And big surprise the amount of bonfires is crazy The fly tipping is dreadful too and not getting better

Our tip is fully open and has no pre-booking, it's just as it was before covid. It's just as well really, as our household waste bins have changed to a 3 week collection and our kerb-side recycling is whenever they feel like collecting it. We've got 2 weeks worth waiting and it looks like they are not bothering again today.

Our new neighbours don't seem to realise that taking stuff to the tip is an option. About 20 bin bags in the car port. Don't even put the full wheelie bin out for the fortnightly collection. They don't recycle a thing.

I am quite envious of those of you who are able to go to the tip - I don't have a car and our tip isn't allowing people to enter on foot. I paid the council £10 per item last year to collect a broken fan and shredder (a so called bulky waste collection). That was worth it as they were a bit heavy and bully for me to walk to the tip with. However I currently have some used fluorescent and energy saving light bulbs shoved into a kitchen cupboard, and some small broken electoral items under my sofa, awaiting the time when I am permitted to walk to the tip with them. I'm not paying £10 each for them to be collected when I could easily put them in a bag and take them to the too myself, if I was allowed to.

It's bizarre how they are managing dumps at the moment.

Ours always has a huge queue now because they have taken every other parking space out of use - despite the entire complex being outside. I haven't seen parking spaces blocked off in literally any other context during any of the lockdowns, not sure why they feel this measure is necessary??

Bargebill19 and pheasantsinlove it's really difficult to know what your disposal options are because each council has its own rules about recycling and what facilities are available.

Regarding everything going in the refuse trucks, the only time I've known of this is where the material goes to a MRF (materials recycling facility) where it's sorted by hand. A horrible job. It's then separated out into the various fractions.

I would definitely contact your respective councils to ask the specific queries about fence panels and other difficult-to-get-rid-of wastes because household wastes come under disposal arrangements operated by councils or their site operators.

I'm really wondering now which councils you come under?! Honestly, try contact them on their waste/recycling web pages. There are some delays because of staff working from home, collection staff going off sick (happens a lot), but you should have disposal options made available to you.

Stuffin fair enough, you obviously have stuff that people want. Re-use is far better than recycling anyway.

Ours was great pre-Covid apart from very short opening hours on a Saturday morning which was the one time most people could easily get there resulting in a fair bit of queuing. Since Covid it is now pre-booked appointments only and you can only take one type of recycling. If you have more than one type then you must book a separate appointment for each one and you are restricted to only one appointment per week.

@Bibidy

It's bizarre how they are managing dumps at the moment.

Ours always has a huge queue now because they have taken every other parking space out of use - despite the entire complex being outside. I haven't seen parking spaces blocked off in literally any other context during any of the lockdowns, not sure why they feel this measure is necessary??

This is because of covid. It's not just the members of the public who need to be taken account of, it's the site staff. Pre-covid, people just went on site, parked and wandered around to get to the various skips/containers. That was stopped as soon as covid happened.

Most if not ALL tip/recycling sites were closed back in March/April 2020 and didn't re-open well into May that year. This was for several reasons but mostly because of the risk of public not obeying the 2m rule - and site staff not being able to mandate this.

This is why there's a booking system now and I think it's likely that most councils will go down that route. My local recycling site is one with long queues and it's quite dangerous as they extend to the bypass. I'm hoping that they'll put in a booking system; it's the most efficient and safest way to manage limited numbers of public on site at the same time.

Covid had a major impact on the availability of site staff too. Councils that I work with have experienced major absenteeism due to the need for isolating for 14 days. Sorry to say but it has been a boon to some but has an obvious knock-on effect to those sites and availability then to the public.

@LyingWitchInTheWardrobe attached is a screenshot from their website... you can see at the top which council it comes under...

Basically if you do diy you're stuffed as can't get rid of the stuff you're taking out!

I don't understand why you can take an old free standing wardrobe but not a dismantled fitted one 🤷‍♀️

I would never fly tip but I understand why I see so much of this kind of stuff in lay-bys.

We love the new booking system our council has (though I appreciate you need to anticipate what you are up to a day or two in advance).

We are able to drive straight up and unload stuff into the right bins. Staff are around and helpful too (which never used to be the case).

It might be worth suggesting it to your local councillors (or prospective candidates).

@busybanana

I'm feeling very lucky now. We have to book a time slot at the tip, but apart from that everything is normal. I've been a couple of times in the past few months and both times have been in and out quickly. I haven't had to queue at all.

same here. In fact, normally you have to queue, but as you can book a slot it is in and out.

Only problem is, sometimes you have to wait 2 weeks to gte a slot. Eg not a single slot available over easter holidays

pheasantsinlove, that's interesting. I've seen similar and usually, it's limited by volume as to what you can take in as the recycling/tip sites are for householder wastes only. They are trying to dissuade traders from using the sites and that's one of the measures typically used.

Are you able to arrange bulky collections from your council? I would definitely get in touch with them to ask for some disposal information about what you have to get rid of. Your council will though take limited amount of wood and chipboard... I would ask what limited amounts would constitute because if they're satisfied that you're a bona fide householder and it's not waste arising from work you've done from somebody else, they may well accept what you have.

I've seen most councils put these caveats in and it's to prevent Joe Bloggs doing DIY for householders as a business, charging for the disposal - and taking it to a tip site to dispose of.

I am a farmer, and appreciate the general view on here that fly-tipping is wrong.
A point about green waste: much of this gets processed and then spread on farmland. Pastic, glass and wood put in to green bins stands a very good chance of being spread in the countryside. Before I knew this, I accepted a few loads of green waste to be on my farm. I have spent the last 10 years picking up all sorts of detritus, and regret the decision ever since.

@NSA2103

I am a farmer, and appreciate the general view on here that fly-tipping is wrong. A point about green waste: much of this gets processed and then spread on farmland. Pastic, glass and wood put in to green bins stands a very good chance of being spread in the countryside. Before I knew this, I accepted a few loads of green waste to be on my farm. I have spent the last 10 years picking up all sorts of detritus, and regret the decision ever since.

Didn't know that. I once threw a cucumber into the green waste bin, I realised the second it went in that I hadn't removed the plastic wrapper and feel quite shit about that now.

Some areas are managing the tips well. We have to book to attend the tip, so no queuing, and you can have 3 visits in a fortnight. There are 4 bays, A - D, and each one has a complete set of skips - cardboard, wood, garden waste, metal etc. Electrical items like monitors, and clothes bins, are accessed as you enter, once you've been allocated a bay to drive to. Each bay has a member of staff to oversee it and confirm when the cars have driven away. Great system. It was v. v. busy when it first re-opened, couldn't get an appointment for weeks but now you can book for a few days ahead.

People fly tip on our land. Lovely woodland ruined. However, DH went to the tip and they tried to charge him £300+ for some unexceptional waste (some was even refused) when we cleared our house of previous occupants debris. It went into the grey bin over many weeks. I now completely understand why tires, barbeques and other sundries are dumped rather than paying or going back home fully laden.

Fly tipping is a scourge, always has been. But while the barrier to sensible waste disposal is so high, fly tipping will only increase. I lived a few years abroad when the municipal tip took everything as long as you lived local. It was regarded to be the reason for their existence. Imagine: public servants actually serving the interests of local people.

Agree. Moved to 3 weekly bin collections. Lots of fly tipping and street bins are overflowing...hhmm wonder why?! Surely people aren't shoving bags of household waste in the massive street bins? Oh no.

I am one more fucked up recycling collection away from taking ours to the district council's offices and dumping it in the bloody lobby.

Our last lot of tins and plastics went into 'general waste' at the tip because, no, I wasn't going to try and find space for it for another fortnight, or give the puppy the chance to empty it out all over the garden again. I've recycled faithfully for >25 years, but I'm on the brink of giving up as they are so stupidly inefficient.

The buggers also charge to take green waste so I take ours to the tip with the recycling and the glass, they don't take glass from home either.

And it really doesn't help that the bloke who manages the entry point is an officious grump who always treats you like an imbecile.

Goodness, that was cathartic! Thanks for the thread, OP - I feel better for that rant.