STATISTICS show Wychavon as having almost 100 more ‘flytipping incidents’ during 2018/19 than in the previous year.
According to the new data published by Department for the Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), 710 incidents were recorded during 2018/19 – up from 614 the previous year.
The West Midlands as a whole has seen an increase of ten per cent on the previous year after 65,379 flytipping incidents were reported to councils across the region.
Of those 65,379 incidents, 175 took place on agricultural land.
James Treverton, of Farmers and Mercantile Insurance Brokers (FMIB), warned this figure did not reflect the ‘full scale of the problem’ for regional farmers.
“Councils spend millions every year on clean-up costs but private landowners, such as farmers, are suffering in silence with little or no assistance or recourse,” he said.
“The burden of dumped rubbish falling squarely with farmers as they are liable for clearing it up at their own expense, or face prosecution.
“For example one farmer, after finding tyres dumped over his hedge, moved them on the other side of the hedgerow and informed the authorities.
“Although the waste was collected he was slapped with a prosecution order for flytipping.”
The National Rural Crime Network says flytipping is now the most common crime experienced by ‘specific rural business owners’.
For victims of flytipping, the average financial impact to a business was more than £1,000. Visit www.wychavon.gov.uk/flytipping for more.
