Residents and business owners across the Duchy are being urged to make sure they use responsible waste removal carriers or face being fined if their rubbish is dumped illegally.

The warning comes after Cornwall Council issued two fixed penalty notice fines after recent incidents of fly-tipping in Cornwall. 

A householder in Bude, who was undertaking some renovation work, paid a cold-caller to remove building waste from their home, which was subsequently found dumped in Launceston.

Officers from Cornwall Council traced the waste back to the householder, who did not carry out any checks on the cold-caller or take their details. The householder was issued a fixed penalty notice for £200.

Falmouth Packet: Building materials were among the waste found in Launceston Building materials were among the waste found in Launceston (Image: Cornwall Council)

In a separate incident, a business in Bodmin paid an individual to remove commercial waste which was later found in a layby in Truro. The waste included information that identified the business it came from.

The business had not been given waste transfer notes and did not record details of the individual who took the rubbish away. It was subsequently issued a fixed penalty notice for £300.

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When hiring individuals or companies to remove waste, businesses and householders must ensure it is disposed of responsibly.

You can do this by:

  •  Asking a carrier what exactly is going to happen to your waste and seek evidence that it is going to be disposed of appropriately
  •  Asking for details of their waste carrier registration 
  •   Checking if they are registered by searching the Environment Agency's public register of waste carriers 
  •  Taking note of their registration number
  •    Asking for a proper invoice (do not pay cash)
  •    never accept unsolicited offers to have waste taken away
  •     businesses should have appropriate contracts in place for their commercial waste and retain waste transfer notes for any waste taken away

Dumping household, industrial, and commercial waste illegally is a serious criminal offence. If prosecuted, fly-tippers can be fined, for which there is no maximum amount, or potentially sent to prison.

If you see waste being fly-tipped, have digital evidence of an offence or can identify where fly-tipped waste has come from report it to Cornwall Council.