ENVIRO CRIME – TALKING TOUGH?

9/11/06

Have you seen a litter lout dropping a cigarette on the ground, a dog walker leaving his dog’s mess on the pavement, or someone dumping an old sofa on the street? Camden Council is asking the local community to give its views on environmental crime by taking part in a consultation that starts next week.

The public consultation on the council’s Draft Local Environmental Quality Enforcement Strategy starts on Monday 13 November 2006 and runs until Monday 12 February 2007. Members of the public can complete a questionnaire online by visiting the council’s website at www.camden.gov.uk/consults. Council officers will also be visiting community groups, businesses and residents to encourage them to have their say.

The Strategy sets out Camden Council’s ideas for tackling environmental crime in the borough, and what penalties people and businesses could face in areas including littering, waste management, dog control, graffiti and abandoned vehicles. The council’s approach is first to educate and raise awareness and then to enforce. Firstly people will be given plenty of information about looking after the local environment, so they are aware of the responsibility that they have and the things they should avoid doing. But if people still carry out environmental offences – such as not putting their rubbish in the litter bins provided or not cleaning up after their dog – the council believes it is reasonable to enforce against them.

Residents and businesses are being asked to comment on things such as whether they agree with the council’s approach to dealing with environmental crime, what the main environmental issues are affecting their own local area and to give their views on the proposals for dog controls.

The Strategy also sets out the council’s proposals for using Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs),1 as well as existing powers, to help tackle environmental crime. This could include:

Dropping litter; failing to keep a dog on a lead, not cleaning up its mess or taking it into a dog-free area;
Writing graffiti
Abandoning a vehicle
Businesses failing to produce waste transfer documents when asked
Nuisance parking i.e. using the road for business such as selling or repairing two or more vehicles

Cllr Mike Greene, Executive Member for Environment, Camden Council said:

“We all have a responsibility to help keep Camden’s streets clean and attractive to make it a nicer place for everyone in the local community to live and work. Getting rid of problems like litter, dog fouling and graffiti is vital to residents. So although our streets are amongst the cleanest in London, we want to keep improving and take strong action against the few people who abuse this. We are keen to hear from residents how environmental crime affects their day-day-to-day life and their views on how we propose to tackle it.”

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