IMAGES from social media and property websites are being used by Stroud District Council in its fight against illegal waste dumpers.

Fly-tipping increased in the district last year, reflecting a national trend, with 973 incidents dealt with by council officers.

In a bid to track those responsible a vast array of methods have been used to link dumped items to those responsible. Mobile trail cameras and vehicle trackers have been deployed whilst images from a property sales website have been used to prove that furniture found in Cranham came from a home in Gloucester.

Facebook is also being regularly used by council officers attempting to trace those responsible for waste dumping which cost the council about £100,000 in 2016.

Eleven incidents are being investigated by the council whilst the introduction of the fly-tipping fixed penalty notice has made it easier for prosecution to be pursued. 

Of the nearly 1,000 incidents dealt with by the council last year (an increase of about one per cent on the previous year), 586 involved household waste including black bags of waste left by litter bins or recycling banks.

Householders who have waste removed without receiving a waste transfer note from a registered waste carrier could be subject to prosecution if it is later fly-tipped.

People found guilty of fly tipping in a crown court can face an unlimited fine and up to five years’ imprisonment.