Drone camera to be used to spot fly-tippers

A drone will be used to spot people fly-tipping waste in Bradford as part of the council's efforts to tackle the problem.

The technology will examine areas that council officers struggle to access, such as remote fields or gardens, a council meeting heard on Tuesday.

Officers already use 175 fixed CCTV cameras across more than 100 locations in the city to catch people fly-tipping - which had led to a rise in fines being issued, councillors were told.

Amjad Ishaq, environmental services manager, said: "The drone will give us access to sites where illegal activity is going on. It will be useful to find fly-tipping on sites we can't see."

The authority has already taken delivery of its first drone, with staff taking part in training on how to use it, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Dave Dunbar, environmental health manager, said: "We'll deploy our resources where needed."

He said a "considerable number of fly-tipping incidents" had already been recorded on fixed CCTV cameras, leading to more enforcement action across the district.

A council report said the sites for the CCTV cameras had been "strategically chosen based on key factors, including the volume of public complaints, the involvement of vehicles in offences, and their designation as high-priority areas such as gateways, streets and roads with numerous fast-food takeaways".

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