Posting on the fly #1; Funton and the rules/regulations

Funton messes. Just over two months ago the paint pots arrived.

So why are they still there?

Stuff from the lay-by gets cleared almost as soon as someone reports it.Why not stuff on the saltings?

And why does rubbish in the mud tend to stay in the mud?

The Queen's highway

Fly-tipping on highways gets cleared by the local authorities. They have responsibilities for highways. Now you and I might think we know what a highway is, but our understanding often falls way short. A highway is more than a road; a footpath is a highway. Any"way over which all members of the public have the right to pass and repass without hindrance" is also a highway. Unadopted lay-bys, where vehicles have been driven over for years without hindrance, where the owner has allowed the behaviour, can then become part of the highways system. On a narrow road such as Raspberry Hill Lane, such unadopted lay-bys are a godsend on workdays when lorries take the rat-run. So, even though the freehold deeds might say the ownership is with X, sadly X cannot fence off and return to nature (one conservation site I was involved with some years back wanted to do just that when they purchased a parcel of land- soon put straight).

This is why large-scale tipping in the lay-bys along the lane get cleared. The Council have a good response rate, and will prosecute.


Beyond the highway?
Put simply, the freeholder has responsibility. The freeholders all along both sides of that road are painfully aware. Speak to the farmers. They'll tell you they'd love to just move the cak three metres back onto the Highway, but they can't- because they'd then be the ones who are fly-tipping. And the saltings are in private ownership.

If you study the rubbish, you'll soon see new stuff arrives every week. Several of the landowners will pick up general rubbish straight away- that's easy to deal with. More specialist stuff? Sometimes that'll hang around longer, for a full lorryload (more cost effective, especially where disposal is highly technical; white goods, tyres). Unless you look carefully, you may not see the turnover. Some of the paint pots have gone since September.

There's a lot more to it, of course, and there are lots more details here:
Government guidelines
Local Authority responsibilities
Flytipping association

At least the really bad old days of Funton are long behind us. Cars like this one get picked up pretty quickly.

Back in the good ol' days? Long-term parking was the norm. (From 'The Thames transformed', Harrison and Grant, 1976)

Do as I do; pick some of it up to help (and check for addresses!). Think of it as a one minute beach clean. Without the beach. Taking rubbish off the saltings themselves is another matter; the signs make sure we have been informed we do not have permission to leave the lay-bys (though some local birders do sadly still choose to do so). No need; if you walk between lay-bys there's always enough rubbish in the bushes to fill a carrier or two.