In February 2020 the BBC Shared Data Unit reported that organised criminal gangs were being blamed for the continued rise of large fly-tipping incidents across England.
We compared official statistics on flytipping over several years, analysing the scale and cost of major fly-tipping incidents across England.
Our analysis found:
- The number of incidents of large-scale fly-tipping had more than doubled since 2012.
- Police and environmental groups said the nature of fly-tipping was changing - a shift driven by a surge in criminal gangs offering illegal waste clearing services.
- Since the 2012-13 financial year, councils in England had spent just over £59m clearing large scale tips. The bill for such incidents was at its highest in 2018-19.
- Tipper lorry loads accounted for just over 125,000 of the total number of major incidents, while “significant/multi-loads” were recorded for just under 67,000 major incidents.
This piece of content was produced by a regional newspaper reporter working alongside BBC staff.
The Shared Data Unit makes data journalism available to news organisations across the media industry, as part of a partnership between the BBC and the News Media Association. Stories generated by the partnership included:
- Bristol Live: The thousands spent clearing up mounds of fly-tipping dumped in Berkshire by criminal gangs 13 February 2020
- Bromsgrove Advertiser: Organised criminal gangs are dumping lorry-loads of rubbish 13 February 2020
- The Comet: North Hertfordshire records 34 per cent spike in fly-tipping offences 13 February 2020
- Chichester Observer: Large-scale fly-tipping on the rise in West Sussex – and ‘rogue traders’ are to blame 13 February 2020
- Chronicle Live: More than £13,000 paid in fines by fly-tippers and waste dumpers in South Tyneside 13 February 2020
- Gloucestershire Live: Criminal gangs are behind a fly-tipping epidemic in Gloucestershire 13 February 2020
- Llanelli Online: Carmarthenshire records highest cost for dealing with fly tipping 13 February 2020
- North Norfolk News: Call to dump DIY waste charge amid record fly tipping in part of Norfolk 13 February 2020
- Northamptonshire Telegraph: Kettering major fly-tipping clearance costs rocket 13 February 2020
- Peterborough Telegraph: Criminal gangs dump hundreds of lorry-load fly-tips in Peterborough 13 February 2020
- Portsmouth News: Local councils have spent almost £300,000 on major fly-tips since 2012, new figures show 13 February 2020
- Romford Recorder: Revealed: Large scale fly-tipping incidents cost Havering Council more than £43,000 last year 13 February 2020
- Shields Gazette: Six-figure cost to South Tyneside taxpayers of clearing up after fly-tippers is revealed 13 February 2020
- Sunderland Echo: 'No excuses for fly tipping in Sunderland' as near million-pound cost to taxpayers is revealed 13 February 2020
- Wilts and Gloustershire Standard: Organised criminal gangs are dumping lorry-loads of rubbish 13 February 2020
- Worthing Herald: Six-figure cost of empty business units in Worthing, Adur and Arun revealed 13 February 2020
- Yorkshire Post: Criminals are fly-tipping lorryfuls of waste in Yorkshire - and it's costing us half a million each year 13 February 2020
- Berkshire Live: The thousands spent clearing up mounds of fly-tipping dumped in Berkshire by criminal gangs 14 February 2020
- Express and Star: Gangs dump lorry loads of rubbish as figures reveal fly-tipping frenzy 14 February 2020
- Eastern Daily Press: Responsibility falls on homeowners to cut flytipping "at its very source" 14 February 2020
- Harrogate Advertiser: Large scale fly tipping in Harrogate triples in 8 years - costing the taxpayer almost £30,000 14 February 2020
- Liverpool Echo: Criminal gangs behind rise in 'new narcotics' blighting our streets 14 February 2020
- Nantwich News: Fly-tipping: the full cost to Cheshire East taxpayers 14 February 2020
- Northampton Chronicle: Northampton Borough Council pays out nearly £100,000 in flytipping clean-up fees 14 February 2020
- Rochdale News: Major fly-tipping rates in Rochdale one of highest in country last year 14 February 2020
- Great Yarmouth Mercury: Responsibility falls on homeowners to cut flytipping "at its very source" 15 February 2020
- Scarbrough News: Large-scale fly tipping in Scarborough borough doubles in eight years - costing the taxpayer thousands 14 February 2020
- Lancaster and Morecambe Citizen: Fly-tipping rises sharply as 'gangs dump industrial quantities of waste' 17 February 2020
- Lancashire Telegraph: Fly-tipping rises sharply in Blackburn with Darwen and Hyndburn 17 February 2020
- Pontefract and Castleford Express: Councils are counting the cost of organised criminal flytipping gangs 21 February 2020
- Wakefield Express: Councils are counting the cost of organised criminal flytipping gangs 21 February 2020
- Evesham Journal: Costs of fly-tipping in Dudley revealed 24 February 2020
- Brent and Kilburn Times: Mass rubbish dumping in Alperton is a 'criminal act' says council 25 February 2020
- Essex County Standard: Colchester Council spent £620k cleaning up flytipping 25 February 2020
- Halesowen News: Costs of fly-tipping in Dudley revealed 25 February 2020
- Ham & High: Fly-tipping: Camden's spending nearly doubles to £791,000 in 2018-19 26 February 2020
The story was also used by BBC Breakfast television, BBC News at One, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Radio 2 - Jeremy Vine
Visualisation
- Embedded digital video: Tackling the fly-tippers who dump by the truckload
- Line chart: The rising cost of large fly-tipping to English councils 2012-19
- Map: Clean-ups of a lorry-load or more in each English district per 10,000 people 2018-19
