Public in Dudley urged to help catch fly-tippers as more than £1,600 in fines handed out
More than £1,600 in fines have been issued in the fight against fly-tipping in Dudley – and council bosses have called on communities for help to catch more offenders.
Dudley Council has issued five fines since September last year after spotting people on the CCTV network.
People face fixed penalties of up to £400 or could potentially end up in court if they are caught fly-tipping.
Council bosses are asking people to help catch even more offenders by naming and shaming them when they are caught on cameras.
A “rogues gallery” of images have been captured and shared on the council’s website under the You’ve Been Shamed initiative.
People can go online and report offenders anonymously if they recognise them.
Councillor Shaz Saleem, cabinet member for highways and environment, said: "We are continuing to catch and prosecute people for fly-tipping using our new CCTV system.
"The cameras are so sophisticated they can capture detailed images from hundreds of metres away, which is really useful in this ongoing fight to tackle the problem.
"We really need help from people in the borough to name and shame these people on our You’ve Been Shamed web pages. There’s a rogues’ gallery of people who think it is ok to dump rubbish for other people to clean up. That is not acceptable and we must continue to do all we can to catch them."
The council is planning to invest an extra £150,000 as part of its budget commitments for the next financial year.
It includes £60,000 over three years for 12 more deployable cameras, making a total 24 for use.
The remainder will be spent upgrading the traffic cameras across the borough.
More than £7,000 in fines have been issued over the past 18 months.
Councillor Laura Taylor-Childs, cabinet member responsible for community safety, added: "This extra investment in the CCTV network sends a clear message to people that we are always watching if you try and fly-tip in the borough.
"We simply cannot allow a few mindless people to spoil our borough for everyone else. We will continue to use this excellent CCTV network to keep our borough clean and make people feel safe."
For more information visit dudley.gov.uk/youve-been-shamed
