Hillingdon Council asks residents to identify suspected fly-tippers from CCTV
The council says its CCTV posts have been viewed more than 850,000 times, and it has issued more than 300 fixed penalty notices worth about £134,000.
Hillingdon Council has started posting CCTV images of suspected fly-tippers on its social media channels and is asking residents to help identify the people in them.
The council says the images have been viewed more than 850,000 times since it first shared them in mid-October, and have drawn around 2,500 comments, some with information on who the people pictured might be.
It says its enforcement officers have already issued more than 300 fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping, worth around £134,000 in total. The council has also said CCTV images will be shown on screens in its libraries and leisure centres.
Hotspot at Hayes church car park
One of the places the council has picked out is outside the car park at St Anselm's Church on Station Road in Hayes. Images released by the council show bags of household rubbish dumped on the pavement next to the car park.
In its appeal, the council said fly-tippers "weren't as anonymous as they thought" and that its enforcement teams were investigating. It said most residents dispose of their waste responsibly, but a small minority think they can dump rubbish without consequences.
Cllr Adam Bennett, the council's Cabinet Member for Community, Environment and Enforcement, has spoken publicly about the scheme and why residents are being asked to help. The council has said the approach has shown early success and that it plans to carry on with it.
Anyone who recognises the people in the images or has information can contact the council confidentially by emailing Publicprotection@hillingdon.gov.uk. Fly-tipping can also be reported through the council's website.
First vehicle crushed
The CCTV appeal follows another step against illegal dumping. In September, the council crushed a vehicle linked to fly-tipping for the first time in the borough.
The council said a Ford Iveco flatbed truck had been caught leaving waste in Ickenham last year. The vehicle was later seized in Hayes and destroyed. The council said it will use all the powers it has to keep the borough clean, including stopping, searching, seizing and crushing vehicles.
What the penalties are
Hillingdon Council issues a £1,000 fixed penalty notice for fly-tipping offences. More serious cases can go to the magistrates' court, where offenders face unlimited fines or up to five years in prison.
The council has also reminded residents that householders can be held responsible if their rubbish is dumped by someone else. Anyone paying another person to take away waste should check that they are a licensed waste carrier.
Fly-tipping covers anything from a single bag of rubbish left on the street to dumped furniture, household appliances, building rubble and hazardous waste. The council collects rubbish dumped on council land, including roads, pavements, public car parks, green spaces and council estates. That clean-up is paid for by council taxpayers.
The council says it believes it is among the first local authorities to run such a public campaign asking residents to help identify suspected fly-tippers from CCTV images.