Residents in an Edinburgh housing scheme have told how their lives are disrupted by continious fly tipping.
Keir Liddle, 43, bought his home on Wardieburn Street East in Granton at the beginning of the Covid pandemic with his partner Amanda Gilmour, reports Edinburgh Live.
The couple viewed their flat around November 5, and were told the build up of debris and rubbish would be collected for the local bonfire – with the pair thinking nothing more of it at the time.
However, over the course of the past three years they have seen their community blighted with dumped household rubbish such as nappies and condoms as well as entire furniture units scattered across the communal back green.
The back green area is for all residents of flats on Wardieburn Street East, Wardieburn Terrace, Wardieburn Drive and Wardieburn Place East.
Before the couple moved into the property, the communal space had been renovated, giving residents an area for people to hang their washing as well as community allotments for residents to use.
However, the space plunged into a scene of despair which has attracted foxes and vermin, causing the area to be almost unusable by families.
Keir, who works as a social researcher, accepted the council had come three to four times to clean the area, but he claimed this required residents to plead with the local authority for action on several occasions.
He is calling for a concerted effort from homeowners, tenants and the authority to work together to focus on prevention rather than reaction to the issue.
“We noticed the problem when we were viewing the property but we weren’t really paying much attention to the outside,” Keir said. “A guy told us someone was collecting for a bonfire or something.
“Unbelievably it has been worse than it is now. My problem began when I started trying to report the fly tipping online which was not always an easy system to navigate.
“To be fair to the council they will clear it eventually but it took me ages to convince them to come out and deal with it. But within a few weeks of them doing so, the area is back to how it was.
“Sometimes when we complain we get the ‘budget is low’ response and on one occasion I was told they cannot keep coming out here because it is the residents who are causing the problem. I’ve suggested we could put up CCTV which homeowners could contribute to but the idea was not picked up.
“They have arranged an engagement event and have put up posters about fly tipping as well as sent out letters but this has done nothing to deter those responsible. Some of the worst rubbish I’ve had to pick up has been used nappies and condoms which have fallen out of blown over bins.
“Not only is the rubbish bad but the council has also let weeds grow through the new tarmac in the back green. I think if they made an attempt to make the area look nicer then it would discourage folks from dumping their rubbish.
“The council are doing the whole big regeneration thing in the north of Granton and building new housing and greenspaces which is great. But it does feel a bit like there are now two Grantons. The one the council blows their trumpet over and our area which has some real ongoing problems for residents which are not being solved.
“Just because this is not an area people are visiting to look at the castle or for attractions doesn’t mean we should be left to our own devices. It is a bit depressing to be paying your mortgage or rent every month and just see the problem continue to spiral.
“I think it’s horrible, to be honest. It’s a small minority who don’t care.
“It’s absolutely terrible. But it seems like nothing really gets done. Ultimately we need to find some way of identifying those responsible. For now, we all feel hopeless.”
Keir confirmed he has never witnessed anyone in the act of fly tipping but he believes it is a handful of individuals who are destroying the area for everyone else.
Keir and Amanda are both eager to stay in Granton as they love their neighbours and the community but they are demanding action be taken to make the area a more pleasant area to live.
They admitted that as homeowners they would be willing to step up and contribute to any maintenance of the space or for preventative measures.
“Fly tipping has been incredibly frustrating to deal with,” Amanda said. “Keir is more annoyed than me as he has been contacting the council so much, as it’s been ongoing since we moved in.
“For me, I’m frustrated at neighbours being scruffy and lazy while having no community care for the area. I do appreciate the council have spent loads of money to upgrade the back green, and for people to treat it this way is disappointing.
“Equally, I am very frustrated at the council for not intervening in tackling the problem.”
Edinburgh Council officials give guidance on fly tipping on the authority’s website. They state: “We will investigate and dispose of fly tipping on public land.
“If you have any information that may help solve an incident of illegal dumping please email [email protected].
“Please include the location and a description of what has been dumped and any information on who left the items or the registration number of the vehicle involved.
“The Council can issue fixed penalty notices of £200 for flytipping. Courts can impose a penalty of up to £40,000 or imprisonment.
“Where items are flytipped on private land, the landowner is responsible for clearing it away.”
The council has been approached about the above incident.
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