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More 'grot spots' to be
cleaned up
A 2nd campaign to rid communities in
Wirral of some of the most problematic areas for fly tipping is now underway. 18
'grot spots' have been earmarked for action after local Councillors and
partners nominated sites in their neighbourhoods; on either privately owned or
unregistered land, which have been particularly blighted by fly tipping.
The Council is reinvesting some of the proceeds received from littering fixed
penalty notices to get these areas cleaned up as soon as possible, hiring
contractors to do the work and where possible, billing careless or unresponsive
owners.
The latest phase of this campaign saw an unregistered area of land on Barton
Street, at the rear of Grange Road West, in Birkenhead cleared. This land had been
suggested for clearance by the Birkenhead BID, as it was blighted by unpleasant
fly tipping, litter and overgrown vegetation and had a small derelict building
next to it which was attracting anti social behaviour.
Over a period of four days last week, work to clear the land and demolish the
small structure took place and the area is now much improved, with the land no
longer providing the seclusion and cover for the kind of activities that were
taking place there previously.
Cllr Phillip Brightmore, Cabinet member for Environment, said:- "The areas
being targeted in this operation are all places which we know are used by
prolific fly tippers. They are not public areas, so the responsibility lies with
landowners; not the Council; to take measures to keep their land clear and
secure. Many landowners take their responsibilities seriously and look
after their land as best they can. However, in other problem areas; where a
landowner has been difficult to identify or they've been unresponsive, or where
the land is just unregistered; we're using proceeds of littering fines to clean
up our borough to the benefit of local communities. We will then seek to
recover the costs wherever possible and take steps to deter future fly tipping,
including measures that will help the Council to identify and prosecute anyone
who does return and attempt to dump waste there again. We will not tolerate
environmental crime."
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