APPENDIX 5
Memorandum from the Colne Valley Society
Re: "Environmental Crime—Fly-Tipping,
Fly-Posting, Litter, Graffiti and Noise".
This Society has been asked by the Civic Trust
to comment on the above; we reply as follows:
1. What is the scale of the impact of these
crimes on the local environment?
High. Ours is a semi-rural area, the rural parts
of which in particular are not cleaned adequately by the local
authority (Kirklees Metropolitan Council).
2. Has there been a cultural change in attitudes
to these kinds of crimes and are they being treated more or less
seriously than in the past?
We feel that the general public has less civic
pride than ever and thus the problems get worse.
Punishments for offenders are inadequate.
There is a perception amongst some people that
our local authority "goes through the motions".
3. Do responsible bodies who deal with the
problem and its consequences have sufficient powers and resources
to do so?
No, budgetary constraints are always an issue.
We also suggest that powers be given to authorities to clean-up
private property and charge the owners. However, see comment (2).
4. Is there sufficient dialogue and co-operation
across Government and amongst the various bodies responsible for
dealing with the problem at a local level?
We find that lack of inside knowledge makes
this difficult to comment on as a general rule. However in the
Kirklees area the introduction of waste-collection charges from
private households (for large items and garden waste) has become
a political issue, one side claiming it to be successful and the
other promising to drop it if re-elected.
Kirklees Council would have the public believe
that the charges have not led to an increase in fly-tipping, but
anecdotal evidence suggests otherwise.
5. What alternatives exist for dealing with
these types of crimes outside the criminal justice system?
Regulation of food take-aways.
The education of schoolchildren, who we feel
are responsible for most of the litter and a lot of graffiti.
On-the-spot fines, as have been used in Calderdale
(Halifax). This could be self-funding.
Better enforcement by local councils—ours
has been presented with addressed envelopes fly-tipped but claimed
that unless the culprit is caught red-handed "there is nothing
we can do".
6. Does environmental crime have a disproportionate
impact on poorer and less advantaged sections of society?
Yes, particularly as the introduction of collection
charges affects them most and they generally live in the more
neglected areas. It has been suggested however that this section
of society is the one most responsible for the problems in the
first place.
We apologise for the brevity of our comments,
but given the extremely short window allowed for replies this
is all we have had time for. Many societies such as ours meet
once monthly and it was only by coincidence that we were able
to help at all.
February 2004
| 
