Waste crime summit held in Greater Manchester

Agencies across Greater Manchester have come together at the region's first waste crime summit.

The event was attended and supported by Deputy Mayor Kate Green and brought together representatives including the Environment Agency, Greater Manchester Police, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service and all 10 Greater Manchester local authorities.

The event built on existing coordinated action against waste criminals.

The conference was focussed on the current scale of waste crime in Greater Manchester and the distinct roles authorities play in tackling it, including the different enforcement tools available.

The event also aimed to increase the amount of information received by the public as at the moment, only one in four waste crimes are reported.

Ian Crewe, Area Director for the Environment Agency in Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire, said: "We will not tolerate waste crime and are already targeting the worst offenders along with shutting down illegal operations across Greater Manchester.

"But this isn’t an issue that any single agency can solve alone. The summit brought together agencies to tackle this collectively and build on the work already taking place.

"By sharing intelligence and resources we can help prevent waste crime and disrupt the criminal networks behind it."

Kate Green, Deputy Mayor of Greater Manchester said: "Last week marked a turning point in the fight against waste crime, and a commitment to work together to prevent, enforce, disrupt and resolve issues quickly, if and when they arise.

"We need to understand the relationship between waste crime, other criminal activity and anti-social behaviour, so that we can work together to disrupt the networks that are blighting the lives of local residents and costing the health of local people, especially children who attend schools or play in parks close to these illegal dumping grounds.

"There is no place for fly-tipping, large scale illegal dumping, unpermitted development and nuisance behaviour in Greater Manchester. Those responsible will be made to pay for its clean up."