Wandsworth Council has launched a new anti-litter campaign after finding that it spends £3.8 million a year tackling the problem.

Under the campaign, the council will be:

• embarking on a public-awareness campaign relating to the environmental and economic impacts that litter has on the area;
• introducing a new fleet of street cleaning vehicles to ‘sweep and hoover up’ litter; and
• ramping up enforcement action against those caught littering and fly-tipping.

To try and crack down on commercial waste being fly-tipped and to keep streets cleared of waste, the council has also introduced specific time bands when shops and companies can leave waste out for collection, and will be undertaking spot checks on commercial premises to ensure they are complying with waste and litter laws. The council has warned that those found not complying with the rules could face a £110 penalty charge notice (which, in the event of failure to pay within 28 days, will be doubled to £220) and, potentially, a civil court summons.

Indeed, the council states that more enforcement action is needed as, in the past 12 months, nearly 800 have faced legal action over breaches in environmental protection laws. Of these, 10 people (who were caught dropping litter near Tooting Broadway and Clapham Junction stations) were taken to magistrates’ court after failing to pay fixed penalty notices (FPNs), and were fined further (the average fine and court costs paid was £383).

Savings from litter action could result in 'lower council tax bills'

Councillor Jonathan Cook, environment spokesman for the council, commented: “What we are trying to do is make sure that Wandsworth‘s streets remain amongst the cleanest in London.

“We will of course go on picking up all the litter that’s deposited on our streets because we take great pride in the borough’s appearance, but we also want to get across the huge cost of this task and encourage those people who do drop litter to stop and instead either use one of the many street bins that can be found all over the borough or alternatively take it home and put in their own dustbin.

“Council tax payers are having to fund a clean-up operation that costs millions of pounds a year. Families that are already struggling to pay their bills do not need this unnecessary burden. If the litter isn’t dropped in the first place then we won’t have to spend huge sums clearing it up and these savings can be passed directly on to local people through lower council tax bills.”

Find out more about waste services in Wandsworth.