Access to the site in Eastchurch, known locally as Eastchurch Gap, was prohibited under the 1995 Environment Act by Maidstone Magistrates Court in June 2023 following a three year battle to stop illegal fly-tipping there.
The effort to shut down the site has been a multi-agency effort with the Environment Agency, local authority and the Rural Task Force for Kent Police.
At the time Gordon Henderson, the MP for Sittingbourne and Sheppey, spoke about a ‘nightmare’ situation for the island’s local beaches, with landfill waste washing up on its shores, close to protected habitats for wading birds and two nature reserves.
He told Kent Online he believed general waste was being dumped over the cliffs and construction waste was dumped on top. This was washed away, leaving general waste littering the beaches.
The restriction order at the site has now been extended for another six months until 20th June 2024 which makes it a criminal offence for anyone to access the site without permission from the agency.
Concerns
Matt Higginson, environment manager for the Environment Agency in Kent, said: “Our priority is protecting the local community and environment. This order has been secured following the local community’s concerns and the environmental impact of the tipping of waste at the site.
“While most waste sites are operated responsibly, we will take action against those who flout the law.”
However local councillors have raised the alarm that shutting the site has simply shifted the problem elsewhere.
A statement from the Environment Agency to Letsrecycle.com added: “We want to protect the Eastchurch community while continuing an investigation into reports of waste dumped illegally at Eastchurch, working with Kent Police and other agencies across Swale to target waste carriers suspected of illegal activity.”
DIY Charges
Kent county council introduced charges for DIY waste at all of its household waste and recycling centres in 2019, joining around one third of local authorities across the UK with similar charges.
From 30th December 2023 these charges have now been scrapped after new government legislation abolished the fees, in the hope of deterring such cases of fly tipping, was introduced in June 2023.
Fly-tipping and waste crime is estimated to cost the economy £924m per year in England.
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