Council team recognized at Keep Britain Tidy Awards for tackling fly-tipping via campaigns and increased prosecutions.
The council almost won the enforcement award. Cambridge and Wigan were also nominated; however, Wigan Council actually won the award.
In 2024, the team did lots of work, focusing on both education and enforcement. They wanted to improve the environment and aimed to reduce fly-tipping in Wiltshire.
The council had a “We’re Targeting Fly-tippers” campaign, called WTF. They started another campaign in July, this one called “Stop at Source” or SAS.
SAS is about responsible waste disposal, teaching about your “duty of care.” This matters when you give waste to someone else, for example, people advertising “tip runs” online.
A council member, Nick Holder, spoke about the award. He said being nominated was great and thanked the team for their hard work, mentioning their positive attitudes.
Fly-tipping in Wiltshire is decreasing, and prosecutions for fly-tipping rose by 31%. The council uses all legal options available, warning that illegal waste disposal will not be tolerated and offenders will face serious consequences.
Last summer, someone in Swindon got fined £1,000 for dumping waste by the road between two towns.
The person said they were cleaning their car and put a box on the ground. Then, they forgot to put it back in the car. The council investigated and found them.