Councillor Bhupinder Gakhal, cabinet member for resident services at City of Wolverhampton Council, with contact details for the Shop a Tipper scheme
City of Wolverhampton Council is continuing its crackdown on suspected fly tippers with another successful prosecution and another result for its Shop a Tipper scheme.
A city resident reported an incident of suspected fly tipping to the council through Shop a Tipper. Because their information led to a prosecution, the resident received a £100 Enjoy Wolverhampton gift card.
Officers are now reminding offenders that they are being watched – and warning them not to ignore council investigations.
In the latest prosecution, Shannon Mattox, of Waltho Street, Whitmore Reans, was found guilty in her absence of one obstruction charge under section 110 of The Environment Act 1995 for failing to comply with investigating officers’ requests for assistance.
Dudley Magistrates Court ordered Mattox to pay a fine and costs totalling £1,716 during the hearing on 12 March. The costs awarded to the council will be reinvested back into its environmental crime service.
In this case, a woman was seen on 16 February last year wheeling a bin with a house number on it. She was then seen throwing bags of household waste from the bin onto an open space off Waltho Street.
Correspondence with a name and address was found among the waste and Mattox was served with a notice asking her to attend the Civic Centre. She failed to attend as required.
The incident was reported under the council’s Shop a Tipper scheme by 3 independent witnesses. One of the witnesses provided an information statement and will receive a £100 Enjoy Wolverhampton gift card.
Under the council’s Shop a Tipper campaign, residents are encouraged to report any incidents of fly tipping.
If the information provided leads to successful identification, and Fixed Penalty Notices are issued and paid or a prosecution takes place, residents receive a £100 Enjoy Wolverhampton gift card.
Residents can contact 01902 552700 with information or report online at Fly-Tipping – Shop a Tipper.
Eight gift cards have recently been given out to residents in Whitmore Reans, Penn, Bushbury South and Heath Town.
In total, 29 gift cards have been issued under the Shop a Tipper scheme. In each case, residents have reported incidents of fly tipping and provided the council with evidence to issue a Fixed Penalty Notice.
In addition to the reporting scheme, officers from the council’s environmental crime team have seized 2 vehicles in the last 3 weeks in relation to fly tipping offences under their ongoing work.
Councillor Bhupinder Gakhal, cabinet member for resident services at City of Wolverhampton Council, said: “This is a great result for our Shop a Tipper scheme, and I’d really like to thank the resident who came forward and provided the vital information which led to another successful prosecution.
“Shop a Tipper allows residents to report this horrible crime and means our officers can investigate and bring people to justice.
“We continue to work hard to deter fly tipping through a variety of methods including our Shop a Tipper scheme, CCTV cameras, a drone and the recent increase in our Fixed Penalty Notice to £1,000.
“Suspected fly tippers should be aware that they are being watched – and they can’t ignore our investigations.”
Residents are reminded that waste can be disposed of free of charge at our Household Waste and Recycling Centres (tips) which are open 7 days a week from 8am to 4pm. Centres are at Anchor Lane, Lanesfield, Bilston and Shaw Road, Wolverhampton.
A bulky item collection service to dispose of big unwanted items is also available, find out more at Bulky item collection.