"It is just horrible," says resident about fly-tipping as TV, dog bed and rubbish dumped in Sheffield woods
Items such as a ‘hazardous’ smashed TV, dog mattress and several bin bags full of rubbish had been illegally tipped in Beeley Woods near Middlewood.
This is also not the first time resident Irene has spotted rubbish strewn across the embankment and woods.
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Hide AdIrene Nall from Church Street in Oughtibridge said: "There was fly-tipping all along Beeley Wood Lane. We like to go through there for walks.
"There’s an old TV that is smashed, and bits of the screen are smashed which is quite hazardous in itself. There’s an old dog mattress, and some bin liners full of stuff.
"It is just stuff haphazardly thrown. You are walking down and you can see it in the woods from the actual lane, and it is just horrible, it really is.”
It was announced recently that the number of fly-tipping fines issued in 2020 trebled from the previous year in Sheffield with 186 fixed penalty notices doled out.
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Hide AdSigns put up by the council that can be seen from Beeley Wood Lane have not been enough to deter fly-tippers, and Irene wonders if the cost to pick up items is too much for some people – but this does not excuse the illegal dumping, a criminal offence across the UK.
She said: “They have got the signs up, that say ‘we’re watching you’ and ‘fly tipping is an offence’, but it doesn’t deter them.
"The trouble is that if the council lowered the price to pick things up it might get a bit better. My neighbour had an old fridge she had to put out to get picked up and it cost her £26 just for one item. That’s a lot of money if you’re living on your own.
"People must just think, ‘oh I’ve got a fridge to take away – ah, I know, let’s just take it down the woods and throw it away there.’
"Someone must have come in a van or car to throw it all away because there’s too much just to be carried.”
Sheffield City Council have been contacted for a comment.