A NORTH Baddesley man has been made to pay hundreds of pounds after dumping rubbish in Chilworth.

The successful prosecution, brought by Test Valley Borough Council, has been hailed by civic bosses who have vowed to crack down on fly-tippers.

At Basingstoke Magistrates' Court on June 14, Lee Hillier, of Heath End, pleaded guilty to two charges of dumping controlled waste without a permit, and another two charges of transporting controlled waste when not a registered carrier.

Hillier was made to pay a £200 fine, £200 to Test Valley Borough Council, and a £30 victim surcharge.

Lower Test Valley has been blighted with a number of fly-tipping incidents in recent months, which included a number of fridges dumped in a field in Houghton, and waste left at Woodley Cemetery in Romsey.

Now, having successfully prosecuted Mr Hillier, who dumped the waste in Chilworth Old Village and Roman Road, environmental portfolio holder Graham Stallard said it was a great result for the council.

He said: "Once again this was a great result in court for the council. We take a hard-line approach to fly-tipping in our borough and this case sends a strong message to anyone thinking of illegally collecting and disposing of waste.

"We investigate every report of fly-tipping and where there is sufficient evidence, we will prosecute.

"The council is taking this opportunity to remind everyone that if they choose to use a business to remove waste from their property or to carry out garden maintenance, it is their duty to make sure they are authorise to do so by checking that they are a registered waste carrier."

The council also said that businesses that cold call, offering waste collection or garden maintenance services, or who offer such services on social media, may not be legitimate and could dispose of the waste illegally.

Other incidents since the turn of the year include 50 tyres being left behind a housing complex in North Baddesley and waste blocking a road in Rownhams.

Figures from DEFRA and obtained by the Country Land and Business Association, which is based in Test Valley for the south east, showed that there were just under 1,000 incidents reported to Test Valley Borough Council of fly-tipping between 2016 and 2017.

A total of 981 incidents in Test Valley were reported, but the CLA says it believes the overall figure to be considerably higher due to others being unrecorded.

The figures represent a 15 per cent rise from 2015 – 2016, with 851 incidents being reported of fly-tipping. The previous data between 2014 and 2015 showed just 536 incidents.

CLA regional director for the south east, Robin Edwards, said: "Fly-tipping is not a victimless crime. I is easy to blame the householders but we're seeing more and more waste on an industrial scale dumped across the countryside. To combat this anti-social behaviour, we need to see tougher penalties which act as a true deterrent."