About Against Litter

We're all responsible

• Our campaign
• Campaign activities
• What is litter?
• What are the fines for littering and dog fouling?
• What is fly tipping
• Litter facts and figures
• How can I support your 'Against Litter' campaign?

Our Campaign

You've told us that littering, fly tipping and dog fouling are a priority concern in the Chichester District and we agree with you.

We live and work in one of the most beautiful places in the country and yet we have to spend over £1 million keeping our district clean and tidy.

We believe that if we could reduce fly tipping, dog fouling and littering, some of that £1 million could be saved and spent on more important community services.

That's why, we introduced our Against Litter campaign. We trialled a successful litter enforcement scheme and encouraged you to alert us of any littering in your area by visiting our Against litter campaign page.

Our Against Litter campaign aims to bring everyone together in the fight against the crime of littering. Our focus will be on urging residents, businesses and local communities to get involved by becoming litter aware and taking a pride in their area.

This is a concentrated effort and will involve a number of different methods. We want to engage with local communities and empower them to take positive, preventative action, as well as encouraging local businesses to get involved.

We hope that by increasing awareness of the issues surrounding littering and fly tipping, and working together, we can keep our district beautiful.

Campaign activities

1. Report it: We will be encouraging you to report fly tips and litter hot spots.
2. Enforcement and fines: Littering is a crime and anyone caught dropping litter — which includes cigarette ends, cigars, chewing gum, sweet wrappers, food containers and dog waste bags — will receive an on-the-spot fine.
3. Adopt an Area: We are inviting community groups and businesses to 'Adopt an Area' and take pride in their patch.
4. Celebrate community heroes: We will be celebrating the fantastic work of our community heroes who spend hours cleaning up after others.
5. Operation Shelby: We continue to disrupt and deter fly-tippers as part of a partnership approach with other councils, Sussex Police and the Environment Agency. We will also be placing cameras around the district to crack down on fly tipping.
6. Trade driver advice: To help prevent accidents arising from goods falling onto roads, we also work with the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, advising tradespeople to securely fasten their loads, alongside other safety checks. Unsafe vehicles can be prohibited from continuing their journey until rectifications have been made.

What is litter?

Litter is anything that is thrown down or dropped and then left. This includes:

• cigarette ends
• cigars
• chewing gum
• sweet wrappers, and
• food containers.

What are the fines for littering and dog fouling?

It is a crime to drop litter or to leave your dog's mess behind.

• If you are caught dropping litter, which includes dog waste bags, you will receive an on the spot fine of £100. This reduces to £75 if it is paid within 14 days.
• If you are caught not clearing up your dog's mess, you will receive an on the spot fine of £100. This reduces to £75 if it paid within 14 days.
• If the fines are not paid and a case goes to court, the maximum penalty for littering is £2,500, and £1,000 for dog fouling.

What is fly tipping?

Fly tipping is when waste is illegally dumped on roads or land which is not licensed for waste. Fly tipped waste generally consists of materials such as household waste, large domestic items such as fridges and furniture, garden refuse, commercial waste, such as building rubble and soil, asbestos waste and tyres.

It is a serious crime that costs the taxpayer £350,000 a year. You can be fined up to £50,000 or sentenced to 12 months in prison if convicted in a magistrates' court. If you are convicted at crown court then fly tipping can attract an unlimited fine and up to five years in prison. We can also ask the court to make an order to confiscate vehicles used in fly tip offences.

Household Waste- your responsibility

By law, it is the householder who is responsible for making sure their waste is disposed of safely and legally. Whether you have finished decorating, are a student clearing out your house or been busy sprucing up the garden, it is down to you to ensure your waste is disposed of properly.

When fly tipping occurs, it is often carried out by illegal waste carriers who promise to take your waste away for a bargain fee but then dump it. Some people will drive around specifically targeting homes where there is evidence of work taking place. They will then offer to take your waste away for a fee.

If you are looking to start on a household project such as decorating or gardening consider what waste you may generate and how you will dispose of it once the job is done. Before hiring any individual or company take down the individual / company details and check with the Environment Agency (opens new window) that they are a registered waste carrier.

It's also important that when a company or individual comes to pick your waste up you make a note of:

• who came and description
• vehicle details and the registration, and
• the time and material(s) they took away

If the waste is dumped illegally, the waste could be traced back to you rather the person who dumped it and you would be held responsible.

We may take enforcement action against anyone found to be fly tipping on public or private land. If a substantial quantity of waste is dumped or if it contains hazardous materials, offenders could be prosecuted which could lead to a fine of up to £50,000 and confiscation of the vehicle used to transport the waste.

Litter facts and figures

• We spend over £1 million each year on keeping the district clean
• You can place dog poo bags in any litter bin
• Cigarette butts don't decompose. They endanger wildlife if they are left on the ground and release toxic chemicals
• We deal with around 1,000 fly tip cases a year.

How can I support the Against Litter campaign?

• Sign up to support our campaign and receive regular news and updates.
• Report any hotspot areas for dog fouling littering or fly tipping. You can contact us to report a problem.
• Sign up to our Adopt an Area scheme and become a community clear-up hero. We can support your initiatives whether you hold an event once a year, every month, every week - it's up to you!
• Make sure that if you are doing any decorating / household work that you dispose of your waste both legally and safely.
• Be alert to fly tipping in your area- have you seen unfamiliar vehicles at strange times of day?
• Ask your child's school if it would like to have a Waste Buster education programme.

Sign up and support the Against Litter campaign

If you are against litter and would like to receive more information, adopt an area or report a litter crime, then complete the form below and join in our campaign to keep our district litter free.