Asbestos & Waste Materials

Asbestos & Fly-tipping of Waste Material

Please note that the dumping of asbestos and the fly-tipping of other waste materials on this allotment site is prohibited.

(1) Illegal Acts

The dumping of asbestos and the fly-tipping of other waste in a non-designated area is illegal and those doing so are liable to prosecution.

The key pieces of legislation which govern this are:

S33, s34 and s59 Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA 1990)

Clean Neighbourhoods Act 2005

Reg.10 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006.

(2) The Landowner

The Council, which owns the land, is taking a tougher stance on people bringing rubbish and hazardous materials, especially asbestos, onto sites they own.

Put simply, it is illegal dumping and can lead to hefty fines under the fly-tipping and asbestos legislation above.

The Council are themselves able to levy fines on the individuals concerned. You may have noticed an increasing number of news stories in the press about fly-tipping. Government at all levels are keen to make the penalties more widely known and bring cases to act as a deterrent.

The Council is also acutely aware that simply clearing away asbestos on a regular basis encourages some unscrupulous allotment holders to "import" asbestos onto site in the sure knowledge that the Council will clear it up.

(3) Robin Hood Allotment Association, Asbestos & Waste Materials

In this environment of tightening the application of the existing legal rules, the allotment association will be working with the Council to develop a long-term approach to managing the asbestos on site with a view to managing or clearing it all over a period of time. This will, of course, take some doing but if we can work towards having a clean site we are working in the right direction.

(4) Rumour

Please do not pay attention to rumour or scuttlebutt about what is or what is not happening with regard to the on-site management of asbestos or waste materials.

The allotment association will inform you of any action being taken or any action you may need to take as and when appropriate.

Once a draft asbestos management plan has been created it will circulated to members.

(5) Non-designated Area

The whole of the Robin Hood Allotments site is legally a "non-designated area".

This means that there are currently no places on site where members are able to place asbestos or other waste materials that they wish to remove from their plots.

ie. members with asbestos and waste material on their plots must retain that asbestos and waste material on their plot until notified otherwise.

The areas at the bottom of the “Cabbage Patch”, the car park, vacant allotments and the hedgerows and grass verges which have been used for dumping in the past are not designated areas. It is not permissible to dump any asbestos or other waste materials in these places or elsewhere.

To do so is to commit an offence under the legislation above and those doing so risk prosecution.

(6) New Asbestos and Waste Material on Site

No further asbestos or waste material may be brought onto the Robin Hood Allotments site.

Asbestos or waste material brought onto site for any purpose will be deemed fly-tipping.

If members have asbestos or waste material at home or elsewhere, then they must dispose of this themselves in an approved manner. It must not be brought onto site under any circumstances.

(7) Exiting Asbestos on Plots

There is no immediate plan to remove all asbestos from the site, although this would be our long term hope.

Those with existing asbestos on their plots must retain it on that plot, either in situ or under quarantine in one place until notified otherwise.

Small pieces of asbestos are best quarantined by being placed double-bagged a couple of bin liners.

Asbestos sheeting should not be broken-up and if breakage looks likely it is best left in situ if possible.

(8) Thank you

Thank you for helping to manage the asbestos and other waste material on site by bearing in mind the guidance above.

The association will be in touch on an on-going basis as this project unfolds.

Robin Hood Allotment Association

8th July 2019