Brazen fly-tippers have been caught on video plaguing a North London neighbourhood by dumping truckloads of rubbish in eco parks, alleys and gateways.
Locals in Harrow have called the borough an ‘environmental disaster’ after years of fly-tipping have made their streets look like a ‘a recycling centre’.
Last month, two men were caught on camera ignoring the traffic passing them on a busy road as they force an entrance into an eco park before their accomplices drive up with two full lorry-loads of rubbish.
The men were recorded prowling in the darkness on the night of January 10 outside the small wooded area which is the source of the River Roxbourne.
The gate to Newton Farm Ecology Park was already wide open but it was still not large enough to accommodate the lorries that were lying in wait until the two men crowbarred off part of the frame.
Harrow Council shared the ‘disgusting’ video in a bid to identify the ‘shameless and irresponsible’ duo.
The council confirmed that investigations were ongoing to find the fly-tippers but they had ‘issued three Fixed Penalty Notices for breach of householders duty of care’.
They are the latest offenders whose dumping antics have been highlighted by the council’s ‘Wall of Shame’ on YouTube.
CCTV captures the two men using a crow bar in a bid to wrench the gate apart
Seconds later two fully laden lorries swing in and begin dumping their loads
Litter-pickers the next morning found the deluge of waste that was left behind in the eco park
Rubbish included carpet, boxes, timber, cupboard doors, filled sacks and mattresses
‘Our cameras have caught offenders in action and we need your help in identifying them,’ the council wrote as it launched the site in October last year.
‘Fly-tipping isn’t just disgusting, it’s a criminal offence and carried out by those who have no respect for their neighbourhood and those around them.’
‘It will also help send a strong message to anyone else who thinks this behaviour is OK.’
Witness appeal boards have also been placed in hotspot areas in efforts to curb dumping in the borough where 1,147 fines were issued for fly-tipping between 2023 and 2024.
In a petition handed to the council’s Cabinet last summer, residents said they were ‘disgusted’ with the ‘appalling, unhealthy environment’.
They also identified two fly-tipping hotspots on Kenmore Avenue where fly-tipping was prolific in the hope more action would be taken.
Cllr Pritesh Patel, Cabinet Member for Cleaner Streets and Public Safety at Harrow Council, said: ‘Like our residents, we are fed up with seeing fly-tipping happen on our streets.
Fly tippers have been known for dumping at the end of Kenmore Avenue
‘There are no excuses for it.
‘These people show no respect for our borough, and we are determined to find them and fine them.
‘We’ve already increased fines which now start at £1000, and our officers are checking all reported fly-tips.
‘Our CCTV cameras are now also catching fly-tippers in action. Where there’s evidence, we will take action including taking these people to court.’
Harrow Council added: ‘While we continue to work with residents and businesses on the right way of disposing waste which includes our annual free bulky waste collection service – we’re also investing an additional £800,000 to keep our streets clean and restore pride in Harrow.’
But one local has said that they aren’t doing enough and that a lack of enforcement officers has led to a rise in anti-social behaviour, including fly-tipping.
Sanjay Kotak, who is part of South Harrow Traders, told Harrow Online ‘there appears to be little to no deterrence against littering, spitting, fly-tipping on side roads and behind shop’.
In October it was announced £270,000 would be invested in street cleaning and expanding enforcement efforts across Harrow.
Two men were caught dragging a mattress and a piece of furniture down Park Way in September and left them on the side of the road
Another pair were seen leaving an old mattress down an alley
Three men carry a black leather sofa down Canons Park Parade in November
Another group leave a white sofa on the corner of Pinner Road
But last month the council had to back down after trying to fine a five-year-old £1,000 for fly-tipping.
Its environmental enforcement team sent a fixed penalty notice (FPN) addressed to the child claiming she had been ‘witnessed by a uniformed officer… committing the offence of fly-tipping’.
They warned that they were ‘about to instruct the council’s legal team to start court proceedings’ against her and a conviction ‘carries a maximum penalty of £2,500’.
But the parcel packaging that had her name on it was found a street away from her home address.
The girl’s father said it was ‘absurd’ to issue a fine to a child and believed the packaging had ended up on the street because of over-filled communal bins by their flat.
The fine was cancelled after the issue had been raised at a council cabinet meeting.
Cllr Stephen Hickman said ‘charging a child is ridiculous and the process has been very stressful for their father’.
Fly-tippers can be punished with a fine of up to £50,000 or a 12 month prison sentence if convicted in a Magistrates’ Court.
If it goes to Crown Court it can attract an unlimited fine and up to five years imprisonment.
