Black bin bag inspectors visiting all households in UK area to hand out £100 fines

Enforcement officers have descended on households in one UK area, checking black bin bags and handing out fines for recycling mistakes.

Every household in one county in Wales has been visited by bin bag inspectors to see if they have been putting recyclable waste in their black bins bound for landfill.

At a meeting of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council on October 21, councillors were told that 'every property in the county' had been visited by an enforcement officer, meaning more than 32,000 homes received a knock on the door asking about their black bin bags.

According to reports by Nation Cymru and the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Andrew Long, who manages the council's frontline enforcement services, told the meeting: "The wardens are very proactive in all the work they do. The main enforcement tool we use at the moment is the keeping up with the Jones' campaign.

"Over the last six to eight years every property in the county borough has had an enforcement visit so that's over 32,000 homes.

"The work involves taking a black bag out of someone's presented residual waste, photograph and log it and take it to the Silent Valley HWRC (Household Waste and Recycling Centre) and examine it for any recyclable material it might contain.

"If people are identified as putting out recyclate in their residual waste then we take an enforcement process which involves serving a legal notice and FPN (fixed penalty notice) and prosecution if that isn't paid."

The fine is set at £100.

The government gives councils the power to issue these fines for failing to recycle, under Section 46A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

In guidance to local authorities, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs says: "The Government wishes to encourage a measured and balanced approach, where householders are not penalised for minor breaches of waste bin rules. The use of these penalties should focus on those who cause genuine harm to the local environment.

"It is good practice to try and inform the household about any issues on the presentation of their waste bins. For example, you could use a letter or information notice. You should do this before moving to the process of issuing penalty notices outlined here."

The guidelines stress, though, that fines cannot be issued for 'minor problems' such as putting something in the wrong bin by mistake, forgetting to close bin lids or leaving waste out for hours before collection.