Issue - meetings

(a)       That the Committee support the Environmental Enforcement Policy in Flintshire;

(b)       That the Committee support the statutory powers to deal with abandoned trolleys under Section 99 of Schedule 4 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990; and

(c)        That the Director of Environment reviews the proposed charges for the collection, storage and disposal of abandoned trolleys prior to submission of the report to Cabinet.    

The Interim Environmental Protection Manager introduced a report to seek approval of the Environmental Enforcement Policy and statutory powers to deal with abandoned shopping trolleys, under Section 90 and Schedule 4 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 as amended by the Clean Neighbourhood and Environment Act 2005.  

            During 2012 the Council’s Internal Audit team carried out a review into cleanliness in the public realm and a key recommendation of this audit had been to set out a clear policy direction on enforcement within this area.  The Environmental Enforcement Policy explains the Council’s approach towards key environmental /Council enforcement issues faced by residents and staff on a daily basis.  The Policy is intended to be a reference point to residents, Members and officers instead of having to make contact with several department or areas of the website to find out information. 

            Councillor David Evans thanked the Interim Environmental Protection Manager for the report but raised concerns regarding residents who continued to dispose of their waste in alleyways even though they had been contacted by officers on numerous occasions.  He also raised concern on the length of time taken to remove the waste and that no action was being taken against any individual.  He commented on unsightly properties and asked how this could be tackled if it was not an environmental health issue, and asked what measures were in place to assist elderly residents or families on low income to remove bulky waste from their properties.  He also felt that charges set out in the report for collecting, storing and disposing of abandoned trolleys should be increased.

            The Interim Environmental Protection Manager acknowledged that taking action against individuals for fly-tipping was difficult to progress due to the need to evidence that the Council had done all it could to educate residents on when their bins are collected and ensuring that they had the most appropriate bin as well as giving them the opportunity to change their behaviour.  Only when those steps had been taken could action be taken against an individual.  One option currently being considered to tackle fly-tipping was the installation of CCTV, which would provide evidence of fly-tipping, funded through a Welsh Government (WG) grant.  The Neighbourhood Policy & Strategy Manager reported that through the bulky waste collection system elderly residents or individuals in receipt of job seekers allowance could get their bulky items collected free of charge.  The Director of Environment said that he would review the charges currently set for dealing with abandoned trolleys.  If it was felt that this should be increased, the amended charge would be reflected in the Cabinet report. 

            The Chairman asked how many notices had been served under S215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.  The Interim Environmental Protection Manager reported that there had been 8 successful notices issued across Flintshire.  The Chairman asked that further information on the criteria needed to issue such a notice be provided to the Committee by the Planning Department.  Councillor Paul Shotton suggested that derelict/unsightly properties  ...  view the full minutes text for item 28