Help stop fly-tipping of Christmas rubbish

We produce more rubbish during the Christmas and New Year celebrations than at any other time of the year and this can cause an increase in fly-tipping.

In a bid to stop the illegal dumping of waste over the festive holidays, we want everyone to only use licensed companies and recycling centres.

It costs us around £200,000 annually to deal with the problem and in 2022 we received 3,456 reports of fly-tipping in the district. 

Councillor Jack Hemingway, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment, said: “One of the best Christmas gifts we can give to our communities and to our environment is to dispose of excess waste from the festive period responsibly and safely."

Extra recycling will be collected over the festive period on recycling collection days.

Our recycling centres will accept real Christmas trees. They will be recycled into soil improver for use in land restoration projects.

Reuseable artificial trees can be donated to local charity shops.

If you are planning to use a waste removal company, ask to see their waste carrier license and get a receipt before handing over your money and waste.

You can be fined up to £250, if you give your waste to an unlicensed waste carrier who then fly-tip by.

Anyone who is caught fly-tipping waste will face legal consequences. We have powers to prosecute, and a conviction can result in a £50,000 fine or a prison sentence.

To find out more on how to report fly-tipping and get rid of waste legally, check out our online resources and information pages.

They can be found through:

• reporting fly tipping webpage
• hiring skips webpage
• bulky waste collections

A full list of recycling centres and their opening times can be found on the Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRC) webpage.