Cambridgeshire farmer becomes latest fly-tipping victim
Processed waste is dumped on a field track next to a crop of oilseed rape
A Cambridgeshire farmer has become the latest victim of a serious fly-tipping incident that has seen tonnes of processed waste dumped on his land.
Peter Sharpley, who farms near Peterborough, found the large fly-tip containing particles of plastic, glass, metal and other detritus in a field of oilseed rape last week.
Farmers and landowners who have fly-tipping dumped on their land have to cover the cost of getting it removed.
Peter said: “It’s the worst harvest we have had since 1976 but then to suddenly be slapped with another bill to get rid of waste which someone else has profited from is challenging. Especially as the farm will make a loss this year.
“Last week, we discovered a large pile of potentially hazardous waste, where those responsible have smashed a padlock on a gate and tipped an articulated lorry load of grey shredded material containing glass, metal and plastic and all sorts of other waste on a farm track.
“We generally get sofas, fridges and general house clearance stuff dumped on our land which we clear ourselves. But this kind of waste is beyond our capability to be able to get rid of.”
Peter is in touch with the police and Environment Agency to discuss ways of clearing the waste.
CLA East Director Cath Crowther said: “Sadly the sight of processed waste being dumped in farmers’ fields is all too common in the East of England. Criminals tend to target areas close to major road networks where they can dump waste and make a quick getaway.
“There is only so much that farmers can do to fortify their land. The hard truth is that this is organised crime and criminals are dumping waste like this because they think will get away with it. There is simply not a deterrent, and when people are caught, they are often fined just a few hundred pounds. It’s simply not good enough.
“Then you have the issue where farmers are the victim of fly-tipping, yet they have to pay to clear it. It is so unjust.”
Latest government fly-tipping statistics show that in 2024/25 there were 1.26 million incidents in England. This accounts only for those on public land. Yet the total number of court fines for fly-tipping have decreased by 9% from 1,378 in 2023/24 to 1,250 in 2024/25.