Last month, volunteers from the Housing Standards Team of Sefton Council cleaned up trash that had been left on the streets in Bootle.
The group was able to gather forty bags of street litter from Hawthorne Road and the surrounding residential roads at the end of November in just two hours.
The garbage that was gathered and disposed of in the community skip on Clare Road included glass bottles, clothing, drink cans and takeaway boxes.
The team’s goal was to make the streets, which are located in the Sefton Selective Licencing area, a better place for locals to live. Areas under “selective licencing” require private landlords to submit an application to the council in order to obtain a licence to rent out their space. In addition to meeting a number of requirements, landlords must demonstrate that they have made the necessary arrangements for their tenants to store and dispose of trash.
Bootle Together provided the equipment, purchasing 50 litter picking sets for any community member who wants to help clean up their streets.
Cllr Fairclough, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Locality Services said:
“I would like to offer a huge thank you and well done to the team who took part in last month’s litter pick.
“The impact of small acts such as this is immediately visible and it makes our streets look cleaner, more attractive and reduces the health risk that rats and flies can cause.
“Littering and fly-tipping is an epidemic across the country and the amount it costs us to tackle it could be spent elsewhere for the benefit or communities.”
Littering is a crime for which authorised officers may issue a £75 Fixed Penalty Notice to violators.
A £400 Fixed Penalty Notice may be imposed for fly tipping, which is the illegal disposal of trash.
Throughout the Borough, there are 1300 public trash cans that are regularly emptied and can be used for both litter and dog waste. Litter needs to be carried home or disposed of in them.
Individuals can use the Council’s Bulky Item Collection, bring their extra waste to a nearby recycling facility, or hire a private company to pick it up if it doesn’t fit in their regular collection.
Cllr Fairclough added:
“If you hire a third party to take away household waste, you may still be responsible if the waste is fly tipped.
“When hiring a contractor, you can ask to see the licence issued by the Environment Agency. Alternatively, you can call the agency directly on 03708 506 506 or check on their website.
“Make sure to keep hold of their details to show that you acted responsibly in case your rubbish is thrown away illegally.
“If a deal is too good to be true, it probably is. If fines are applied, it could end up being an expensive mistake.”
Anyone who sees an incident of fly-tipping can report it on the website here.
You can also report fly-tipping by calling 0345 140 0845.
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