A district council has stepped up its proactive campaign to tackle environmental crime.

The Let’s SCRAP fly-tipping event, organised by East Cambridgeshire District Council’s (ECDC) domestic environmental services team, was held at Ely Markets today, Wednesday, 31 July.

Several organisations, who form part of the Cambridgeshire SCRAP fly-tipping group, came together at the event, including the Environment Agency and Cambridgeshire Police.

While East Cambs Street Scene brought a collection of fly-tipped items and asked visitors to guess the weight of the items as well as the cost to the council.

Councillor David Ambrose Smith, chairman of ECDC’s operational services committee, said: “It’s clear to see the strides that we have made in cracking down on fly-tipping.

“East Cambridgeshire a great place to live, work and visit and we want to keep it that way. To achieve this, we need to proactively encourage our residents to report fly-tipping in their community, react to those incidents promptly and penalise those who dispose of their waste illegally.”

Figures from the council have revealed that the number of reports of fly-tipping have fallen across the district.

The statistics show that from April to June 2018/19, there were a total of 171 incidents of fly-tipping reported, compared to 157 in the same period in 2019/20.

In June, there were 42 reports – a decrease from the 49 incidents reported in June 2018.

Councillor Julia Huffer, member champion for waste, health and wellbeing at East Cambridgeshire District Council, said: “The decrease in fly-tipping reports being made to the council is a direct result of the enforcement action and clean-up operations that have been carried out in partnership with the council’s environmental health team and East Cambs Street Scene.

“I am delighted that the fly-tipping event at Ely Markets was so well attended.

“It was great to engage with our residents and let them know how they can help in the fight against fly-tipping.

“The event provided the perfect opportunity to reinforce the message that we are determined to stamp out the fly-tipping that blights our beautiful district.”

The event, which ran alongside Ely Market’s mini market, follows last year’s ECDC week-long crackdown. During the purge, more than 40 tonnes of fly-tipping across the district was uncovered including five freezers, four fridges, three sofas, two armchairs and a 60-inch TV.

Since then, the council has issued more than £2,000 in fines in relation to fly-tipping and littering in the first half of 2019. Two offences went to court where the defendant entered a guilty plea and was fined £320.

For more information about RECAP and the Let’s SCRAP fly-tipping campaign, please visit www.recap.co.uk/fly-tipping/