Wakefield Council urges residents against fly-tipping rubbish this festive season with extra recycling collection announced

In a bid to stop the illegal dumping of waste over the festive holidays, Wakefield Council is urging residents to only use licensed companies and recycling centres.

It costs the council around £200,000 annually to deal with the problem and in 2022 it received 3,456 reports of fly-tipping in the district.

Councillor Jack Hemingway, cabinet member for climate change and environment, said: “One of the best Christmas gifts we can give to our communities and to our environment is to dispose of excess waste from the festive period responsibly and safely.

“Fly-tipping is a stain on our places. It’s an eyesore, it can pose a serious public health risk, and it’s costly to remove.

“With a bit of effort, from all of us, we can prevent it from happening and I’d encourage you to make full use of the help we have available.”

In order to prevent fly-tipping, extra recycling will be collected over the festive period on recycling collection days and council-run recycling centres will accept real Christmas trees which will be recycled into soil improver for use in land restoration projects.

Reuseable artificial trees can also be donated to local charity shops.

Householders can be fined up to £250 if they pass their waste to an unlicensed waste carrier which is then fly-tipped.

The council also warns of legal consequences, including a £500 fine or prison sentence, for those caught fly-tipping themselves.

A full list of recycling centres and their opening times can be found here: https://www.wakefield.gov.uk/bins-recycling-and-environmental-health/recycling/household-waste-recycling-centres-hwrc/