Fly-tippers cover field in mountain of waste
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the worldSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailSign up to our free Morning Headlines emailA mountain of illegal plastic waste has covered a field in Oxfordshire in the latest egregious example of fly-tipping.The 150m-long and 6m-high heap of waste has taken over a field next to the River Cherwell near Kidlington. Charity Friends of the Thames said the illegal rubbish dump was created about a month ago by an organised crime group.Chief executive Laura Reineke said: "This is an environmental catastrophe unfolding in plain sight."Every day that passes increases the risk of toxic run-off entering the river system, poisoning wildlife and threatening the health of the entire catchment."The Environment Agency must act now, not in months or years, which is their usual reaction time."open image in galleryThe 150m-long and 6m-high heap of waste has taken over the field next to the River Cherwell near Kidlington (Billy Burnell)Calum Miller, Liberal Democrat MP for Bicester and Woodstock, told parliament that the mountain of waste increases the “risk of fire”.Addressing MPs on Thursday, he said: "Criminals have dumped a mountain of illegal plastic waste... weighing hundreds of tonnes, in my constituency on a floodplain adjacent to the River Cherwell."River levels are rising and heatmaps show that the waste is also heating up, raising the risk of fire."The Environment Agency said it has limited resources for enforcement, that the estimated cost of removal is greater than the entire annual budget of the local district council."open image in galleryThe illegal rubbish dump was left there by an organised crime group, charity says (Billy Burnell)open image in galleryLib Dem MP says the mountain of waste is increasing the risk of fire in the field (Billy Burnell)A restriction order had been put in place by the Environment Agency. In a statement to the BBC, the agency said it was investigating and appealed for information.It said: "We share the public's anger about incidents like this, which is why we take action against those responsible for waste crime."In a letter sent recently to Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds, the Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee called on the government to set up an independent root and branch review of serious and organised waste crime.The committee argued that fly-tipping is being drastically under-prioritised despite causing significant environmental, social and economic costs of around £1 billion every year.The letter said: “We are deeply concerned about the demonstrable inadequacy of the current approach to tackling waste crime.”The peers also said they were “unimpressed with the lack of interest shown by the police in fulfilling their role by bringing to bear their expertise in tackling serious and organised waste crime”.It comes after the committee held a short inquiry which heard from representatives of community groups, as well as the Environment Agency, the government, officials, police and crime commissioners and waste management specialists.Defra has been contacted for comment.
