Trailers dumped in Dudley have cost £150k in clean up costs

There have been three incidents of trailers being ditched in the borough in the past five months, and 11 since 2019, and the council says it has spent an average of more than £16,000 each time disposing of the waste properly and removing the trailers.

The latest incidents saw two lorryloads of building materials and household waste dumped in Attwood Street and Stourvale Road in Lye.

Community campaigner Naz Ahmed by one of the trailers found dumped in Lye in March (Image: Naz Ahmed)

The trailers have since been taken away and reported to the Environment Agency and the police, who are investigating.

Nicholas McGurk, director of environment at Dudley Council, said: “We have had a number of trailers dumped in the borough now which costs money to remove and clean up, so it is residents of the borough who foot the bill.

“This latest incident in Lye is expected to cost a minimum of £25,000 to deal with, but we are still examining the contents. If there are asbestos or other hazardous materials present it could be significantly more.

“We are working with the police and the Environment Agency to try and catch the people who do this, but it is a real challenge. I would urge people if they see anything suspicious to report it to the police.”

The trailers are loaded with waste as a cheaper alternative to disposing of the rubbish properly, which the council says is part of a nationwide organised crime issue. The trailers are then dumped and often left in a dangerous condition - causing a risk to the public.

Trailers have been found with tyres and building rubble which has also included asbestos.

In 2019 a trailer of building rubble was dumped in Shaw Road, Dudley, costing £60,000 to dispose of due to the hazardous contents.

People can report fly-tipping issues via the council’s MyDudley website.