Wigan councillor's anger at serial fly-tipping problem

A councillor is calling for an emergency meeting to tackle the problem of serial fly-tipping on his patch.
Coun George Davies with the fly-tipped rubbishCoun George Davies with the fly-tipped rubbish
Coun George Davies with the fly-tipped rubbish

Wigan Central representative Coun George Davies is upset that yet more rubbish has been dumped on open land off Coop Street, in Scholes, opposite Wynsors World Of Shoes.

A rug was among the debris he found there at the weekend, with other rubbish strewn across the grassed area.

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Coun Davies has long been campaigning for something to be done to clean up the site and deter the making of further mess.

There have been many incidents of fly-tipping there in recent years and he described the land as “a blot on the landscape”.

He now wants an emergency meeting so that action can be taken to stamp out this eyesore scourge.

He said: “This site has become a target for fly-tippers over many years, who have dumped carpets, electrical items, builders’ materials, bags of gardening stuff and a firm dumped around 1,000 empty glass bottles.

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“Making it more dangerous, used needles were found in the shrubbery, which is only yards from the health clinic at Whelley.

“I will be working with my councillor colleagues to arrange a meeting with officers of the council, the anti-social team and hopefully the owner of this land, so that we can put an end to this very dangerous act on this site.”

In October Coun Davies, along with fellow ward councillor Michael McLoughlin, called for changes to help tackle the problem.

Children’s toys and a pram, as well as a huge pile of rubble, were dumped in the area then.

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Coun Davies said at the time: “I think we should have a free bulky waste collection because this is on the increase.

“We’ve just got rid of an old bed down at Lower Longshoot.

“There also needs to be more action taken, more money provided by the Government and stronger penalties against these fly-tippers.

“I think they should be named and shamed.”

Earlier last year, Coun Davies urged residents to shop offenders to the authorities after a dozen bags of industrial waste were dumped there, weeks after a limit was imposed on how much non-household waste could be left at council-run recycling centres.

Despite the number of incidents at the site, a Wigan Council spokesman said it was not a fly-tipping hot-spot.

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Paul Barton, director for environmental services the council, said: “We were already aware of the litter on the land by Wynsors Shoes and it was cleared away by our teams on Tuesday.

“We believe that most of this litter was wind-blown but we actively encourage residents to contact us through the ReportIT app if they see fly-tipping or other environmental issues.

“Fly-tipping ruins our communities and costs us money to clean up.

“By residents’ not fly-tipping and recycling their waste correctly we can keep council tax low.

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“If residents witness fly-tipping, we ask that they note as much information as possible, including a location, vehicle registration and a home address where possible so we can investigate further.”

To report environmental crime, visit www.wigan.gov.uk/reportit