The plague of fly-tipping has blighted Hastings for years

Fly-tipping… The recent increase in fly-tipping, reported in last week’s Observer, is a plague that has been with us for many years, one only has to look at the number of gates or entrances to local farmland that have been blockaded.

This causes great expense of time and money to local farmers and landowners who have to clear it up.

The cost of clearing the recent building waste adjoining Hastings Cemetery will probably be met by the two councils concerned, which in turn means you the rate payer, unless a miracle happens and the culprits are convicted. It would be interesting to know how many convictions for fly-tipping have been recorded in both Hastings and Rother over the last 10 years.

Guestling church car park has, on several occasions, had large amounts of domestic rubbish dumped so installed a gate causing inconvenience to worshippers, ramblers, dog walkers and visitors to this listed building but on the few times the gate was left open, two large loads of building waste were tipped.

Because the car park constituted private land the council refused to clear it so the cost of sorting the waste and disposing of it, which was nearly a thousand pounds, fell onto the elderly congregation who are also rate payers and nearly all pensioners.

There seems to be a difference between the actions of Hastings and Rother on anti-social behaviour, the former having a team of highly-trained officers whose actions have led to the conviction of five smokers for butt dropping and generating well over a thousand pounds in fines.

Rother has a different attitude. A white double mattress has adorned our lane for the past six weeks apparently unobserved by our environmental agencies thereby encouraging more rubbish to be added.

No doubt cuts by the county will be blamed. Please help to preserve our countryside. If you see a lorry carrying building waste late at night – take its number and any parked private cars which might be acting as lookouts.