Farmers call for action after Oxfordshire waste-dumping ‘catastrophe’

Royal Borough farmers have called for preventative measures to be put in place following the Oxfordshire waste-dumping ‘catastrophe’.

A heap of rubbish was found in a field next to the River Cherwell and the A34 in Kidlington, Oxfordshire. This has reportedly been building up for months.

A criminal investigation took place - and a man from Surrey has now been arrested for it.

Following the case in Oxfordshire, Royal Borough farmers spoke at a rural forum meeting yesterday (November 24) at the Town Hall, raising concerns around issues they face, from fly-tipping to bird flu, bovine TB and flooding.

John Bloomer from the National Farmers Union (NFU), representing farmers in the Royal Borough, wanted to know if any preventative measures and communication initiatives are planned to make sure something similar does not happen in the area.

Mr Bloomer said: “[Fly-tipping] does seem to be a massively growing problem right across the country.

“The only reason that particular [Oxfordshire] catastrophe grew to that size was that nobody thought to report it. Again, that’s communication, that’s education.”

Councillor Mandy Brar (Lib Dem, Bisham and Cookham) agreed that littering is ‘the big issue’ impacting the borough's rural areas.

Farmer Nick Philp said two thirds of the Royal Borough is still considered rural, totalling to 19,843.25 hectares.

The chair of the forum, Cllr George Blundell (Lib Dem, Hurley and Walthams) further said that the fly-tipping in Oxfordshire was ‘shocking’.

Cllr Blundell added: “I think we’ve noticed fly-tipping has not gotten any better and it’s only getting worse. The scenes we saw in Oxfordshire are pretty shocking really.

“I’ve never seen anything like that. You don’t want these people to be emboldened by being able to feel like they can get away with it.”

But Cllr Mark Howard (Lib Dem, Bisham and Cookham) said a lot of the issues that were raised, such as crime and dogs that have been let off their lead and start chasing farm animals, are outside of RBWM’s direct control.

Cllr Howard added: “We have this forum where we can bring people who are involved in that subject.”

But Mr Bloomer argued that the council has a ‘strong role to play’ in how people are informed and educated about their effect on farmlands.

He said: “So many of these things are about education. The person who lets their dog off their leash doesn’t understand that sheep just keel over and die from fright.

“They don’t think about it, and then it’s too late. It’s not done wilfully in most cases.

“Surely there is a role for the council around that educational piece, whether it be through schools or the [council’s] website.”

The Environment Agency is calling this 'not fly-tipping, but organised crime.'

The Agency has installed barriers at the site to keep the waste in, to avoid harm to the River Cherwell, and keep people out as it is 'a crime scene' they said. People have been climbing or standing on it, which could disturb the waste.