COWBOY waste operators who have been responsible for soaring rates of fly-tipping in Barnsley will have the vehicles they are caught using seized and crushed as part of the second wave of a fresh crackdown announced this week.
Barnsley Council and other local authorities will work with the police to identify, seize and crush vehicles of criminals.
Drones and mobile CCTV cameras will be deployed to identify cars and vans belonging to fly-tippers so they can also be destroyed.
Ministers have launched a rapid review to slash red tape blocking councils from seizing and crushing vehicles.
According to Barnsley South MP Stephanie Peacock, Barnsley Council currently have to bear the significant cost of seizing and storing vehicles but under new plans fly-tippers will cover this cost, saving councils - and taxpayers - money.
She said: “Residents in Barnsley are sick of our streets being plagued by discarded rubbish and waste and it’s gone unpunished for far too long.
“That’s why I welcome the Labour government’s fly-tipping crackdown that will punish waste cowboys, tackle the scourge of waste crime and tell those who disrespect our area where to go.”
The number of fly-tipping incidents recorded in Barnsley climbed by 13 per cent in the last year, with 4,980 being recorded, costing taxpayers in the town £265,000 in the last financial year.
More than 1,000 fines have been dished out during that period - although the number of vehicles seized and crushed have been minimal.
This led to tougher new fines to be implemented by the council last year, with four-figure sums being dished out to several at Barnsley Magistrates’ Court since the change.
It’s been announced through the new raft of changes that the Environment Agency will also carry out identity and criminal record checks on operators in the sector so there is nowhere to hide for rogue firms.
The reforms will also give them more power to revoke permits, issue enforcement notices and hefty fines, as well as five-year prison terms being available in worst-case scenarios.
Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed, added: “Waste criminals and fly-tippers who blight our towns and villages have gone unpunished for too long.
“The government is calling time on fly-tipping - I will not stand by while this avalanche of rubbish buries our communities.
“Under the Plan For Change, this government will seize and crush fly-tippers’ vans to clean up our streets.”
Coun James Higginbottom, cabinet spokesperson for environment and highways, told the Chronicle: “Littering and fly-tipping is an appalling blight on our communities and something we take very seriously, with our teams doing everything they can to clear dumped waste in our borough quickly and bring fly-tippers to justice.
“This isn’t just reserved for Barnsley as it’s a national issue, but we absolutely recognise the importance of this as it’s something that impacts our communities.
“It gives us a strong platform to take action.
“I encourage members of the public to report any instances of fly-tipping so we can continue to target and punish those who commit these crimes in our borough.”
