Thirteen and Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston have joined forces to slam the fly tipping that is blighting some of the town’s estates.
The housing company recently released shocking images showing a recent spate of fly-tipping in neighbourhoods across the town that is putting people’s health at risk.
Now, Thirteen’s operatives are undergoing extra training to ensure their safety and that of the general public while dealing with dumped rubbish, with some members of staff being trained as fly tipping investigators to help them find the people responsible.
Under normal circumstances dumped waste can be removed immediately, but in-line with government advice, it must be left for 72 hours during the COVID-19 outbreak before being moved to minimise any possible risk of the rubbish being infected with the virus. However, this increases the risk that the dumped waste will attract pests and be a hazard for local people.
Scott Lowther, director of facilities management at Thirteen said: “Under normal circumstances, fly tipping is a criminal act. It is an eye-sore and it is hazardous to people’s health. During the virus outbreak, it’s even more dangerous and irresponsible, putting our colleagues and communities at risk.
“To help tackle this issue, we’re training more of our staff to equip them with the skills to investigate who might be responsible for dumping the rubbish. Nobody should be fly-tipping and while we know that these are not normal times, that really isn’t an excuse. If you live on a Thirteen estate and you spot any fly tipping, please get in touch with us. Any Thirteen customers who are struggling with larger items of rubbish can contact us and we’ll do everything we can to help and advise.”
Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston said: “Fly tipping has a massive effect on people who live here and across the whole town. Seeing this rubbish makes me feel angry, sad for people who live here but I feel really determined that we catch the people responsible.
“I want to see them prosecuted, fined and if we can get it to a criminal situation the can go to prison and I’d like to see that because I think it will deter other people.
“You can put your rubbish in your bins and if you’ve got bulky items the council will remove them free of charge. We’ve scrapped that charge.”
People with any information about fly-tipping on estates managed by Thirteen are urged to report it by calling 0300 111 1000, by sending a direct message to Facebook.com/ThirteenGroup, or by contacting their local council.