Cowboy waste disposal firms illegally dumping rubbish miles away

Glasgow residents are being warned to double check who they’re letting remove their rubbish amid concerns over it being illegally dumped.

STV News was taken to multiple sites across the north of the city, where rubbish including fridges, beds, shelving and even children’s toys had been fly tipped.

On many of the packages left, addresses from miles away were still visible – showing the rubbish had been transported before being dumped.

Waste removal from any home or business should be carried out by a licenced provider, but SEPA warn cowboy firms are on the rise and are often linked to criminals.

One street in the Milton area has been described as one of the worst workers have seen for dumping waste.

Strewn across a derelict grassy site, next to homes and businesses, tyres, industrial waste and multiple mattresses are causing an “environment catastrophe” according to the GMB’s Chris Mitchell.

“You can quite clearly see behind me, this is just an environmental catastrophe. It’s depressing to look at,” he told STV News.

“It’s bad for the environment, it’s bad for the area. Instead of pointing the finger, let’s sit around the table, let’s get funding, let’s work a proper strategy to try and tackle this.”

The problem with this site is that it is on private land, making enforcement challenging.

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: “We are aware of the ongoing issues at this location and have been responding accordingly. However, as the site is privately owned, it is the landowner who is responsible for addressing the fly‑tipping occurring on their land.

“A live statutory notice is currently in place under the relevant environmental protection legislation, requiring the owner to take appropriate action to remedy the fly‑tipping. We are presently reviewing the next steps in relation to this statutory notice.”

It’s not just a Glasgow problem – in Ayrshire tonnes of waste were dumped on a site over the final days of December, with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency saying it’s clear criminality is involved.

Glasgow & West

Appeal after huge piles of rubbish illegally dumped by lorries

The piles of waste were discovered at two locations in December

Jennifer Shearer, from SEPA, said: “That has been an organised, intentional activity that criminals have taken advantage of vacant land, they’ve identified that spot and they’ve used white-sided lorries, we believe, to tip mixed waste material over a number of days at the end of December.”

Glasgow City Council added that fly tipping is a “scourge” and that they will work with Police and SEPA to issue fines of £500 to those dumping illegally.

However they warned it’s down to the home owner to check the company they use has a legal permit to remove waste.