A series of CCTV cameras using AI technology are being installed at hotspots across the East Riding in the fight against fly-tipping.
East Riding of Yorkshire Council is fitting high-tech towers of CCTV cameras at sites in Cottingham, Hessle, Boynton near Bridlington and Rawcliffe near Goole, in a bid to catch any fly-tippers in the act on film.
The council hopes the new cameras will also deter people from dumping rubbish in the first place and prevent them from committing the environmental crimes.
The council’s streetscene enforcement team receives around 2,500 reports of fly-tipping each year. The reports are investigated, prosecutions are brought where possible, and the rubbish is removed at the council’s expense
Anyone caught fly-tipping in the East Riding could be ordered to pay a fixed penalty of up to £1,000 or the case could be taken to court, where they face an unlimited fine or even imprisonment.
Three of the CCTV towers have now been installed in areas prone to fly-tipping – in Cottingham, Boynton and in Rawcliffe – with two more to follow soon – in Hessle and a second in Cottingham.
During the installation of a camera tower in Cottingham, officers found fly-tipping close by and this is being investigated.
The camera towers will operate around the clock for the next 12 months and any footage of offences they capture will be fully investigated and used in evidence against those responsible.
The council intends to issue those criminals with fixed penalties or take them to court to face fines and costs, where possible.
The towers have been placed on grass verges in each of the hotspots. Their cameras cover all angles and the footage recorded is monitored by CCTV security operatives trained to detect offences. They are also fitted with automatic number plate recognition software.
One of the camera towers uses the latest AI technology to automatically detect rubbish being dumped and notify staff when incidents occur.
The council’s team is then alerted to investigate the fly-tipping offences.
Each of the camera towers are also fitted with anti-vandal measures which alert staff when anyone attempts to tamper with them.
The council has partnered with three companies – Kingdom, WCCTV and Clearway – to hire the CCTV cameras. All three firms have specialist experience and knowledge in working with local authorities and helping to tackle environmental crime.
At the end of the 12 months, East Riding of Yorkshire Council will evaluate how the cameras have performed, with the intention of buying some of them to make them a permanent part of its long-term strategy targeting fly-tippers.
Councillor Lyn Healing, the council’s cabinet member for communities and public protection, said: “Fly-tipping is a blight and a nuisance, particularly in some rural parts of the East Riding.
“Our team investigates reports of fly-tipping we receive and they have had some success in the past with our own mobile CCTV cameras, but we haven’t had the resources to fully tackle this problem.
“Therefore, the council has purposely invested in these CCTV camera towers to step up our action against those who commit these crimes.
“These new cameras and their AI technology have been tried and tested by other councils and we want them to replicate the impressive results they’ve already produced elsewhere, here in the East Riding.
“To be clear, we will prosecute any fly-tippers caught by these cameras when we can and try to stamp out the dumping of rubbish in these areas.”
At a previous CCTV camera installation by Kingdom at several hotspots in Dartford, Kent, they helped towards a 96% reduction in fly-tipping and a 99% reduction in complaints.
John Roberts, chief services officer at Kingdom LAS: “We are pleased to be working with East Riding of Yorkshire Council to support their efforts in tackling fly-tipping across the area through the installation of our WasteWatch/AI cameras.
“Fly-tipping is becoming more common across England, and our camera systems help tackle waste dumping in known fly-tipping hotspots and catch offenders.”
Last month the council launched a 12-week trial of a CCTV camera at a site in Willerby as part of a similar scheme to record and combat instances of roadside littering.
