West Lindsey District Council

West Lindsey Council’s Community Safety Team is urging residents to make sure they check the credentials of any waste removal carrier to see if they are genuine.

The message comes after a recent case where one resident had hired someone to remove their waste and it was then dumped at Linwood.

Kim Enderby, West Lindsey’s Senior Licensing and Community Safety Officer received a report of the fly tip on 10 October 2022.

He said: “My team attended and made a full search of the fly tip. They were able to retrieve items which, following further enquiries lead us to the owner of the dumped property.

“We contacted them and they informed us they had hired what they believed to be a genuine waste removal carrier who was advertising on Facebook.

“They were shocked to find that they had employed a rogue operator who had just dumped the items he had been paid to remove, rather than dispose of them in a legal and responsible way. They were also able to provide evidence that proved they believed they were employing a legitimate operator and we were able to use this in identifying the individual involved.

“Had they been unable to demonstrate this they would have been responsible for the £400 Fixed Penalty Notice themselves.”

On this occasion, the person responsible for dumping the waste was traced. When he became aware of all the evidence against him, he admitted responsibility and paid the £400 fine in full. His details have been passed to the police and shared with other agencies.

Chairman of the Prosperous Communities Committee, Councillor Owen Bierley said the Council will not tolerate fly-tipping.

He said: “West Lindsey District Council is committed to reducing the amount of illegal fly tipping taking place across the district.

“We investigate every fly tip that is reported to us and if the evidence is found we will always serve a fixed penalty notice against the person responsible. This is why residents must always take the time to ensure that they are hiring the services of a legitimate business.

“By doing a few simple checks they can prevent rogue businesses from operating, help prevent future fly tipping offences occurring and protect themselves receiving a £400 fixed penalty notice”.

The message to the public remains the same – always to carry out a few simple checks before paying someone to remove your waste:

• Anyone offering to remove waste of any type, should have a valid waste carrier’s licence, which they should be able to produce upon request. Or you can go on The Environment Agency website and check that the business is registered.
• Don’t pay in cash and do ask for a waste transfer note or invoice – any legitimate operator will be using these.
• Ask some simple questions to establish where your waste is going – you can even make a record of the registration number of the vehicle being used to transport the waste.

West Lindsey Council is carrying out regular patrols at fly tipping hotspots across the district, deploying cameras and signs – all aimed at deterring offences from taking place. We continue to work closely with The Police and Environment Agency, sharing intelligence and carrying out joint patrols to tackle issues like fly-tipping.

As a member of the Environmental Crime Partnership for the County we work closely with the other district councils sharing information and details of offenders.

If members of the public have encountered or have any concerns in relation to any individuals or businesses operating illegally they are encouraged to get in touch with West Lindsey District Council so they can investigate their concerns.

To ensure the waste carrier is legitimate customers can obtain a ‘Waste Transfer’ Note from them. You can check their registration details at: https://environment.data.gov.uk/public-register or by calling 03708 506 506.

To report a fly-tipping please visit: www.west-lindsey.gov.uk/bins-waste-recycling/street-cleansing-litter-collection/fly-tipping

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Councillors in West Lindsey say they are ‘extremely concerned’ about the sheer scale and number of solar projects planned within a small area of the district.

Four nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIP) have been proposed for West Lindsey, that if granted would generate 2.08GW (Giga Watt) of energy. This is almost 40 per cent of the total energy generation of the projects proposed across the East Midlands (5.3 GW) and more than 12 per cent of the projects proposed across Great Britain (17.1 GW).

NSIP’s are not decided through the normal local planning processes, which means that West Lindsey District Council is NOT the decision-making body for this application. They will go to the Government Minister for Business, energy and Industrial Strategy, via its Planning Inspectorate, for a Development Consent Order (DCO).

Leader of West Lindsey District Council, Cllr Owen Bierley said the ‘sheer scale’ of the proposals in West Lindsey is at ‘odds with both local and national policy.

He said: “It does not effectively balance the need for local social and economic prosperity, self-sufficiency in terms of food production and the protection of open countryside against the need to generate green energy nationally”.

Cllr Bierley has written to the Minister of State for Business, Energy and Clean Growth, Graham Stuart MP, urging him to consider the wider impacts.

He said: “If these NSIP proposals and others like them are allowed to go forward, driven by market forces and economic expediency alone that the impact on the countryside and rural communities would be catastrophic.”

Cllr Bierley strongly believes that rural districts have a key role to play in achieving self-sufficiency and realising net zero by 2050. But he stressed that allowing the market to drive these schemes removes the ability for the Country as a whole to appropriately plan future land use requirements. He added: “Ultimately it will affect the Countries ability to deliver sustainable food supply for future generations.”

The Council is aware of the challenges currently faced by farmers due to the uncertainty around future subsidies and financial incentives, leading farmers to part with land they would otherwise farm.

The letter outlines how the current proposals would also undermine’ competing priorities including that of the visitor economy of West Lindsey, which generates £43.67m for local businesses.

Cllr Bierley said: “West Lindsey’s unique selling point is access to the great outdoors, big skies and open countryside. Development on an industrial scale is not conducive to protecting or enhancing this critical income stream for a rural area’s West Lindsey.”

Tourism experts at Destination Lincolnshire, which is committed to growing the visitor economy in Lincolnshire, believes the project should be rejected. 

Charlotte Goy, Chief Executive of Destination Lincolnshire urged the MP to consider the long-term implications and negative consequences of having a solar farm of this scale in this location in Lincolnshire. 

She said: “I believe it will impact not only on the immediate businesses near it, but on the whole ecosystem of Lincoln and Lincolnshire as a visitor destination.”

Destination Lincolnshire believes their objection is aligned with national government who are encouraging positive visitor experiences in rural destinations post covid. A government which has gone to extraordinary lengths to financially support the sector and these solar projects could undermine this work. 

Charlotte added: “As the sector recovers from the worst of the pandemic there has been an overwhelming demand for quality tourism experiences from a domestic market which enhance the place DNA and appeal of UK destinations – and Lincolnshire’s countryside offers just this.”

Details on the proposals, the Council’s responses will be uploaded on to the Council’s website.