Council Counts Cost of Country Lane Carpet Dump

The carpet was dumped along with a quantity of house renovation waste at Annel Cross near Downham at the weekend.

Ribble Valley Borough Council workers spent half a day removing the carpet at a cost of hundreds of pounds to council taxpayers.

And following an inspection of the site the hunt is now on for the fly-tippers, or household that the carpet came from, who face hefty fines if found.

The carpet is beige-coloured or a purple and cream design, along with a considerable quantity of pink cladding or floor tiles.

Ricky Newmark, chairman of the council’s community services committee, said: “This is yet another fly-tip in a country lane and our street cleansing team responded as soon as we were alerted.

“The waste is from a house renovation and features a quantity of carpet and associated waste.

“It has taken our workers the best part of a day to clear the mess at a cost of hundreds of pounds to council taxpayers and we are determined to take action against the culprits.

“I would like to thank our amenity cleansing manager, Alan Boyer, and his team for responding quickly and clearing this carpet blight from our borough.”

Householders undertaking renovation work should ensure that contractors are disposing of waste properly, because they too face prosecution if it is traced back to their property.

Fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping start at £400, but prosecution can result in a fine of up to £50,000 and 12 months imprisonment if convicted in a magistrates' court or an unlimited fine and up to five years imprisonment if convicted in a crown court.

Waste crime costs the UK millions of pounds a year in clean-up costs, undermines legitimate business, blights the countryside and is a public health risk.

Anyone witnessing fly-tipping in Ribble Valley is asked to report the vehicle’s registration number in complete confidence to Ribble Valley Borough Council on 01200 425111.