Report it

‘Waste Crime’ is a collective term for the illegal deposit of waste which includes litter or fly tipping. Waste crime can cause serious harm to our wildlife, livestock, people and the environment, so with your help reporting it, we will be able to protect our natural environment, and support enforcement action against those responsible.

Reporting litter – which includes dog fouling and littering from vehicles – and fly tipping helps local authorities and landowners to keep Devon clean because it allows them to react to problems quickly. This reduces the opportunity for more waste to be added (rubbish attracts rubbish), helps identify problem areas, individuals or vehicles, and ensures that valuable evidence which can be used for investigation is not lost.

In most cases, littering and fly tipping investigation and clearance will become the responsibility of local authorities or landowners, but if you see problems on motorways or major A roads you can report the problem to National Highways.

To report littering or fly tipping, use the links at the bottom of this page to navigate to the local authority area where the incident took place. If you would like to report the act of dog fouling, you would need a description of the area you saw the fouling taking place, description of the dog, and details of the owner if known. Some local councils have specific website ‘report dog fouling’ options.

‘Litter’ generally refers to less than a bin bag full and can be reported to your local authority, or if you litter pick yourself, small amounts can be put into street litter bins or your own domestic rubbish containers. Find out more about litter picking on our Get Involved page.

Please note householders should not put their own domestic waste into street litter bins which can lead to overflowing and litter. Unless otherwise stated, bagged dog waste can be put into any public litter bin when out-and-about.

‘Fly tipping’ generally refers to bulky items (such as an old fridge or tyres) or larger amounts of rubbish originating from somewhere else and dumped. Fly tipping on public land should always be reported to your local authority. Please note that fly tipping cannot be taken to Recycling Centres.

You have 4 main options for reporting fly tipping:

1. If rubbish is causing an obstruction on the highway, or large amounts of rubbish are being dumped there and then, call 999
2. If the fly tipping incident is Big, Bad or Nasty – large scale (more than 20 tonnes, lorry load), contains hazardous waste (more than 5 cubic metres of asbestos, or 75 litres of potentially hazardous waste in drums/containers) or fly-tipping by organised criminal groups –  and you think it could be a danger to life or the environment, please contact the Environment Agency.
3. If you find litter or fly tipping on public or private land, please contact the relevant local authority using the links below. Incidents on private land will be referred to the landowner.
4. If you have information about fly tipping (or other crime) and do not want to report to your local authority, you can report anonymously to CrimeStoppers (0800 555111)

There are also third party reporting apps, such as ClearWaste or Fix My Street but be aware that operational arrangements between the local authority and app provider are not always in place resulting in slower response times. It is usually best to report direct to the local authority via their official reporting process.

For all incidents, (litter, dog fouling, vehicle littering or fly-tipping), the following information will help;

• Location (via online reporting form and include what3words reference code if possible)
• Date, day and time when you noticed the problem
• Vehicle registration
• A description of what was found and the quantity
• A photo or video

If you witnessed fly tipping taking place, it would also help us to know:

• How many people were involved, what did they do and was a vehicle involved?
• Did anybody else witness the fly tipping? If so, who?
• Do you have any footage of the incident, registration number or identity details?

Please do not move or open bags or containers as fly tipping could;

• be harmful (contain chemicals or asbestos)
• include sharp or infectious items in bags or containers, which may also be incorrectly labelled
• include contaminated soils

Fly-tippers know they are doing something illegal and do not care about your safety, wildlife, livestock, or the environment, so reporting the incident is the most helpful thing you can do.

Please do not clear fly tipping yourself and be aware that this waste cannot be taken to Recycling Centres for the risks noted above.

Use the links below to navigate to the local authority area where the incident you wish to report took place.