Enforcement action has been taken against a flytipper in Tendring who dumped rubbish next to full recycling bins over the Christmas period.

Bottles, cards, clothing and bags of household waste were dumped next to bins at Clacton’s Brook Retail Park and reported to Tendring District Council (TDC) by local litterpickers.

TDC’s Waste Team managed to identify named individuals from items left within the waste, most of which was recyclable material.

Following the discovery, a resident linked to the flytipping was visited at their home address and issued with a face-to-face formal warning for the offence of flytipping.

Councillor Adrian Smith, TDC’s Cabinet Member for Environment, said: “Flytipping is a crime – and it is a crime not to care.”

“Where evidence is found, we will take action. Our first approach is to engage directly with those responsible, make the seriousness of the offence absolutely clear and encourage people to act responsibly.

“But those who ignore warnings should be in no doubt – we will issue a Fixed Penalty Notice and continued offending can lead to prosecution through the courts.”

Cllr Smith praised the residents who reported the incident, and Tesco,  which paid for a licensed waste contractor to remove the waste that was on their land.

TDC dealt with 545 incidents of flytipping in 2025 and  581 incidents in 2024. In 2025 a resident received a £400 Fixed Penalty Notice after waste was dumped in the Great Oakley area.

Flytipping is illegal under the Environmental Protection Act. For more information or to report flytipping online, see www.tendringdc.gov.uk/content/fly-tipping.