Smelly fly-tipping left for months causing a stench for Willenhall business owners

People have dumped a fridge and a number of black bags full of rubbish on unregistered land next to the Golden Girl store on Market Place – the main shopping street.

The land has become a hot spot for people dumping their rubbish, with the current waste having been there for more than two months.

Ward councillors Simran Cheema and Carl Creaney hit out at the perpetrators and called on Walsall Council to clear the rubbish and install CCTV nearby.

Walsall Council chiefs confirmed the Clean and Green team will clear the land, as they have done previously, and added investigations so far have revealed the offenders are people living nearby.

Mrs Jiwan Lata Gaind, who runs Golden Girl with her husband Prem, said: “I think this is disgusting for the whole town. It makes it look really bad and always gets a reaction from people who come past.

“I have contacted the council a number of times as have many other people. It is affecting my trade as it is all piled up against my building.

“People look at it and think ‘we’re not going in there’ so it has hurt my business. It’s not fair.”

Councillor Cheema said: “The council has taken the evidence so why don’t they get Clean and Green to remove the stuff as they carry out their investigations?

“It’s not the first time it has happened. They’ve cleared bags before but people have dumped again. There needs to be a camera here.

“People need to be made aware that it’s not acceptable and just isn’t on. They should be taking pride in their area.

“The council provides a bulky waste service and the tips are open so I don’t understand why people don’t use the facilities provided for them.

“As we are getting the railway built in Willenhall, we are going to have a lot more people coming to the town and the last thing I want is for them to see this.

“It’s an eyesore for the town. People are passing by and all they see is this rubbish. It’s a gateway into the town. It’s attracting rats to the area and leaving a foul smell.”

Councillor Creaney added: “The council has a ‘Willenhall Master Plan’ but is this going to bring investment into the town?”

As the land is unregistered, the authority is not obliged to clear the area but bosses have confirmed the rubbish will be removed.

Councillor Garry Perry, Deputy Leader for Resilient Communities said: “We are aware of a long standing problem with accumulations of domestic waste on the privately owned land adjacent to Golden Girl.

“Enforcement officers have recently undertaken a bag-ripping exercise and are contacting individuals identified from the waste as a first step before any further formal action is considered.

“At the same time, although the council has no duty to do so, to support the local community Clean and Green again cleared household waste that was on site.

“Unfortunately, waste began to accumulate again within a few days. Clean and Green operatives have cleared excess waste six times in the last two years and have distributed literature about correct recycling and the correct disposal of waste to the nearby flats on numerous occasions.

“While I genuinely sympathise with residents and businesses who dispose of their waste legally and responsibly, I don’t think people are loading their cars with waste at night and driving into Willenhall town centre to dump it on private land.

“Some of the individuals identified from the waste live very locally. The majority of us want where we live to be clean and safe and we can either be part of the problem or part of the solution.

“A further bag rip will now be undertaken and more visits will be made to anyone identified as a result. Clean and Green will also again clear waste from the site including the fridge and other larger items.

“CCTV can be one element of the solution and officers regularly review the locations of cameras and seek to deploy them in hotspot areas.”

Anyone with information on incidents of fly tipping can be report it to community protection at communityprotection@walsall.gov.uk or by calling 01922 653060.