Falkirk Council: Claims tip booking system is leading to more Braes fly-tipping

Councillor Claire Mackie-Brown, who represents the Upper Braes, says she has been disgusted by several fly-tipping incidents over the festive period.

She is now urging people to report offences as quickly as possible so they can be investigated.

The mounds of rubbish – which included boulders in garden waste – were dumped on quiet roads between Braes villages around Avonbridge, Shieldhill and Slamannan.

Mrs Mackie-Brown said: “There has been a significant amount dumped in the last couple of weeks. The worrying part for me is it’s actually getting dumped on the road which causes a huge safety concern.

“Some of the stuff was garden waste with big boulders – they are solid and at night you would never see them! It’s completely irresponsible.”

The councillor says she is concerned by feedback from constituents that a booking system, introduced last year by Falkirk Council, is making it difficult for people to use the local tips.

Some residents have told her that they have had difficulty booking slots at the recycling centres in Roughmute and Kinneil.

The councillor said she has asked Falkirk Council to investigate this.

She said: “We really need to know if the booking system is working or if it is causing problems that could lead to fly-tipping.”

However, she is also in no doubt that much of the problem is caused by irresponsible traders who charge people money to take rubbish away but have no intention of disposing of it properly.

“We need to get people to report it as soon as possible – not just to get it uplifted but also so we can try to find out who is responsible.

“I am happy to report it if people get in touch with me and I will continue to work with Falkirk Council to get it investigated.”

Last year, Falkirk Council agreed to scrap a team of environmental enforcement officers whose job included investigating fly tipping.

But the council says that a rapid response team continues to attend to reports of fly tipping.

Mrs Mackie-Brown said she will continue to work with the community and council officers to address the issue and points to one recent success story which saw an eyesore site cleared.

Grants Opencast site was a hot spot for fly-tipping and Mrs Mackie-Brown said she worked closely with the landowner and Falkirk Council’s waste team to improve the situation.

She said: “We implemented measures to stop people being able to pull of the road and it’s been clear for months now. That’s what we want – we want to be working with people such as landowners, but we also want to deter people.

A spokesperson for Falkirk Council said: “We’re in the process of pulling together information for Councillor Mackie-Brown just now about her specific concerns.

“However, we would say generally that fly-tipping is irresponsible and can blight an area very quickly by the actions of a few selfish individuals.

“We agree with the councillor that the malicious fly-tipping is more likely to have been done by criminals potentially for financial gain

“We do not agree or have any evidence that it is being caused somehow by the online booking system – the system has been widely positively received.

“Any reports of malicious fly-tipping are prioritised and addressed by a rapid response team.

“New and far tougher legislation is being proposed in the near future and we hope that this provides a further deterrent to the individuals involved in this illegal activity.

“Our household recycling centres can accept commercial and residential waste/recycling material.

“Anyone can report flytipping via our website www.falkirk.gov.uk/flytipping.”