Scotland's fly-tipping capital in Glasgow 'won't be solved overnight'

On Tuesday, November 4, work commenced to clear up the area which has been dubbed the "fly-tipping capital of Scotland".

Govanhill Housing Association (GoHA) organised for its contractors Greenearleaf, John O’Conner and MEARS Group to clear three lanes in the area which are "particularly bad for fly tipping."

They say they can see "real progress being made in the area" after calls from the community for more to be done amid the "cleansing crisis."

Scotland's fly-tipping capital in Glasgow 'won't be solved overnight' (Image: GT)

READ MORE: Govanhill in Glasgow is 'fly-tipping capital of Scotland'

The clear up was undertaken at no cost to tenants and provided as part of the community benefits that the contractors all agreed to provide as part of their deals with GoHA.

Staff from each organisation met first thing and removed all bulk, litter and waste as well as trimming back vegetation in an effort to clean up the space.

Keith Kintrea, local resident and chair of Govanhill Housing Association said: "The clean up is a part of the community benefits offered by our contractors and will go some way to improving the local environment in our community.

"We know there are issues with the environment in Govanhill, and that they will not be solved overnight, but we are prepared to work continuously in collaboration with our contractors, the city council, tenants and owners to make a difference.

"We are starting to notice real progress in this area."

Fly-tipping is rife in the area (Image: GT)

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Scott Dark is the pest control and environmental works manager at Greenerleaf, who deals with pest control on behalf of the Association.

Scott said: "As part of our work, we deal with a lot of rats in this area, an issue made worse by fly tipping."

Stephen Golder from John O'Conner added: "Every now and again we participate in initiatives like this to give something back to the community by trying to keep the place tidy.

"It can be a challenging thing to do in this area, but we have found, that over the years things are gradually getting better.

"Every time we do these clear ups, we take a few steps forward."

Mattresses and sofas littered the lanes (Image: Govanhill Housing Association)

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Tackling graffiti was also a focus (Image: Govanhill Housing Association)

It comes after the Glasgow Times walked around the area last month with concerned local residents.

The told us how they were "making 30 reports every time they walk out their door" due to the "relentless" dumping.

Marion Nisbet, from Crosshill and Govanhill Community Council, told us at the time: "We've been fighting this for years, and all we’ve seen is a steady decline of the situation in the back courts and the situation on the streets.

"The majority of the problems in Govanhill when it comes to refuse issues are caused by businesses and private landlords."

Marion Nisbet, Govanhill community councillor, pictured with colleague Damian Tawsney, has said (Image: GordonTerris/Herald&Times)

Chris Mitchell, GMB Glasgow cleansing convenor, said: "Govanhill is now a dumping ground.

"We have nine depots in the city, and we might as well consider it our 10th depot now, given the amount of time we're there lifting stuff.

"I'd go as far as to say that Govanhill is the fly-tipping capital of Scotland. I don't know anywhere else that gets it worse.

"Something radical needs to change, someone's going to get seriously hurt or ill from disease from rats if not something else."

People have ignored signs urging them not to fly-tip (Image: Govanhill Housing Association)

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Govanhill lanes cleared by Govanhill Housing Association Contractors (Image: GT)

Police Scotland stated that the council deals with general fly-tipping enquiries and reports.

A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: “We have street cleaning resources working in Govanhill every day, and we can respond quickly to incidents that are reported to us.

“Fly-tipping is a scourge that causes environmental damage and significant upset within affected communities.

“However, much of the illegal dumping in Govanhill is committed by people from the area, and so information from the community will help us to tackle this issue.

“Wherever we find evidence that identifies culprits, we will take enforcement action.

“We also work closely with partners such as SEPA and Police Scotland to ensure unscrupulous fly-tippers face enforcement action.

“The city’s public space CCTV system is recording 24 hours a day and is a highly effective tool for identifying fly-tipping culprits.

“We are also currently installing four new CCTV cameras in Govanhill to help tackle fly-tipping and other forms of anti-social behaviour after funding was allocated by the local area partnership committee.

“Residents  can request the council to uplift large, bulky waste for just £5 per item or take their waste free-of-charge to our Polmadie household waste and recycling centre, which is five minutes away from Govanhill.”