A COUPLE have been hit with a hefty fine for dumping rubbish - after waste recovered by council officers contained their names and address.
Numerous bags of rubbish and household items were left abandoned at Sandy Bridge Lane, Shafton.
However, enforcement officers - who sifted through the waste on the hunt for evidence - found letters which led them to the unnamed pair.
This led to to a £400 fine and a fresh warning from the council that fly-tipping will not be tolerated after last year saw a rise of more than 1,000 incidents - to 5,254 - from the previous year’s figure of just over 4,000.
Coun Chris Lamb, Barnsley Council’s cabinet spokesperson for environment and transport, added: “We can attribute a large proportion of the increase in fly-tipping to waste generated from households
“However, we’re committed to reducing instances of fly-tipping in Barnsley and take environmental offences very seriously.
“Thanks to work from our enforcement team we’re cracking down on those who fly-tip in our borough, and those who are irresponsible with their rubbish.
“Most instances are small and are more than likely to come from a single household.
“As part of our #EverybodyThink campaign, we’re letting residents know how they can be responsible with their rubbish and help us crack down on fly-tipping.
“More information about the campaign can be found on the council’s website.”
Shafton Parish Council chairman Dave North told the Chronicle that Sandy Bridge Lane - thanks to its secluded nature away from housing - was rife for dumping and has been a constant source of irritation for the local tidy-up team of volunteers.
He added: “Our team of litter-pickers regularly target that stretch of road as it’s out of the way and has been a hotspot for fly-tipping for years.
“It’s on the way out of the village, towards Felkirk and Royston, and there are no prying eyes so it’s a very easy place for people to dump, hence why its cases have been high in the past.
“This fine is a brilliant result and should hopefully deter other people from doing the same, as before now it’s almost like they think they’re bound to get away with it.
“It’s a significant fine but it shows that people who even live in the village are dumping nearby.
“We need to look after our village, not leave fly-tipping behind.”
