Dudley’s environment boss has sent a stark warning to fly-tippers that they will be caught and prosecuted as he rolled up his sleeves to clear up a borough hot spot.

Councillor Khurshid Ahmed, Dudley Council’s cabinet member for environmental services, urged people to be the “eyes and ears” of the community to help catch fly-tippers.

His warning comes as the borough continues to be blighted by fly-tipping. In the latest incident piles of waste were found dumped in Cleveland Street, Dudley.

Councillor Ahmed joined specialist staff onsite to see the mess which included cardboard, bin bags, bits of furniture, bottles and much more.

Last month he announced a “deep clean” of the borough which included cracking down on fly-tipping. Councillor Khurshid Ahmed, cabinet member for environmental services, said:

I want to make it clear to people – if you blight our borough by dumping rubbish illegally we will make every effort to catch you which could result in a fine. Ultimately, it could be very expensive prosecution through the courts for those responsible.

In some cases we are able to trace the people who dumped the rubbish, but often we rely on detailed information from residents as the eyes and ears of their communities.

We are continuing to clear up other people’s mess as part of our deep clean of the borough but sadly this leaves honest taxpayers out of pocket.”

The borough recorded 1,069 incidents of fly-tipping  in 2016/17 compared to 824 the previous year. Whilst the number in 2017/18 reduced to 832, figures nationally are continuing to increase

The problem costs around £60,000 to clean up each year.

People can report fly-tipping by calling 0300 555 2345, by email dudleycouncilplus@dudley.gov.uk or online at dudley.gov.uk.