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Babergh District Council is warning its householders to beware when using third parties to dispose of their household waste, due to new Government regulations, which come into force on 21st November.
The Household Duty of Care Regulations place the responsibility of waste disposal in the hands of the householder, and are being introduced in a bid to stamp out illegal dumping and cowboy waste disposal businesses. Under the new Act, local authorities will now have the power to take action against anyone who has not taken reasonable measures to ensure that their waste is passed to an authorised carrier for disposal.
Technical Officer for Babergh District Council, Jo Hart, explains “we have investigated several cases of fly-tipping where residents have paid unknown third parties to dispose of waste on their behalf, only for that waste to be illegally fly-tipped. The new legislation puts the onus back onto the householder as they can be prosecuted if evidence found at fly-tipping sites is traced back to them.”
Householders can face prosecution or a fine of up to £5000 if it is proven that they did not take reasonable measures to ensure their waste was passed on to an authorised person.
Babergh District Council recommends that where possible residents make use of their local Household Waste and Recycling site. There are three sites in the Babergh district located in Sudbury, Hadleigh and Chelmondiston. Babergh also offers a bulky waste collection service. The current charge for this service is £22 for up to 5 items, of which one can be a fridge or freezer.
The Environment Agency’s website contains a comprehensive list of all companies registered to dispose of waste, www.environment-agency.gov.uk/publicregister. Visitors to the website are asked to enter their postcode and are then provided with a list of companies in their area who can carry out this service. There is also a telephone number for people without Internet access - 08708 506 506.
“Don’t ever arrange for someone to take your waste without seeing a copy of their Environment Agency waste carrier registration, or checking them out first – as it could cost you dearly!” concluded Jo.
Information about how to report fly-tipping. |