Introduction to waste environmental enforcement

Sutton Council struggled for many years to tackle the issue of environmental crimes.

Offences such as fly-tipping and littering have seen a year-on-year increase. This has caused significant harm to our environment. Also causing more expense to the local authority.

In 2020/21, local authorities in England dealt with 1.13 million fly-tipping incidents. In Sutton, fly-tipping alone has increased. It has gone from 3,575 reported incidents in 2019 to 4,394 in 2020 and continued to rise to 4,627 incidents in 2021

They will be wearing their navy blue/black uniforms. They wear Halo body cameras and tactical vests. Each officer has Sutton Council identification badges and warrant cards.

Officers are required to have on their persons 2 forms of identification. Their staff card and warrant card both supplied by Sutton Council and include Sutton Council branding. The warrant card remains on display at all times located on the tactical vest chest pocket.

The halo body camera is fitted to their tactical vest. Officers are required to activate their camera when they enter into conversation with an alleged offender. They are instructed to advise the person that the camera is recording for their safety and yours and the camera is required to be switched off at the end of the engagement and any footage downloaded to a main server at the end of the day, ready for review. A circular blue light will intermittently blink as a visual aid that the camera is recording.

Any footage where a fine is issued or possible prosecution may take place is required to be retained as evidence. The site manager will undertake weekly checks to ensure camaras are being used correctly. All data is stored on a shared server for both Kingdom and authorised Council staff to view at any time.

GDPR allows any alleged offender to access the same footage upon request. Footage is automatically deleted after 31 days unless it's needed for evidential purposes. For example, if a fine is issued or a prosecution case is pursued, evidence will be retained until such time as a judgment is made in court.

Environmental enforcement officers are responsible for:

• looking for illegal dumping, littering, graffiti, and other environmental violations
• giving out Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) and Penalty Charge Notices (PCN’s)
• helping and supporting prosecution cases
• teaching the community how to behave responsibly through outreach and targeted communication days
• informing partner agencies of environmental problems
• working out how to deal with environmental threats to protect the local environment

Officers receive CPD accredited environmental enforcement officer training in the classroom before even stepping on site. This training is the first of its kind in the UK and provides every officer with a nationally recognised qualification in environmental enforcement. 

The training consists of various modules, including:

• Health and Safety
• Conflict Management
• Data protection (GDPR)
• Customer Care
• Obstruction Training
• Use of body Camara
• Legislation and governance
• How to issue a fixed penalty notice

When on-site, the site manager will complete a site induction, which includes covering:

• Sutton’s enforcement policy
• contract expectations
• standard operating procedures
• Officer Code of Conduct
• local knowledge. 

The officers then have a week out with the site manager, senior officers and experienced officers. They will be signed off before being allowed to deploy. Officers are paired up, working in the same area to support each other. 

Training is refreshed every 3 months and camera footage is monitored to ensure officer conduct is of the expected level.

• Flytipping
• Littering/Spitting
• Dog Fouling
• Incorrect presentation of domestic waste
• Bins on highways
• Commercial Waste Duty of Care
• Failure to supply ID or providing false information

Officers may on occasion be required to be assertive when dealing with environmental crimes committed but never rude or aggressive. Officers’ interactions with the public will be regularly reviewed via the body cameras they are equipped with and every officer will be required to undergo extensive customer service training that is refreshed every 3 months.

Officers are not authorised to search personal belongings but may stop individuals if they believe an environmental offence has been committed.

If you feel that any of our officer’s behaviour was unacceptable, write to the address provided on your FPN and your complaint will be investigated. However, this will not influence the outcome of the case if an offence has been committed but will be dealt with separately if there has been a breach of the code of conduct.

Below is an example script provided to officers to help support them in their duties. Officers are not expected to say this word for word but ensure that they cover the main point in any engagement.

Good Morning/Afternoon/Evening,

I am officer XXX and I am an Environmental Enforcement Officer working on behalf of Sutton Council. Here is my ID and I need to let you know the camera is recording. The reason I am speaking to you is because you have littered your XXX outside XXX. The best place for your litter is in the bins [explain where the bins are] or can be kept with you [for cigarette litter, including stubbing pouches] until you reach a bin. This is a littering offence under section 87 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and under section 88 I need to see your ID.
 
Verify the details through the ID and EDA and question any details that do not verify as it is an offence to fail to provide or to provide false/inaccurate details under section 88 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and can be prosecuted for the original littering offence which is up to £2,500 and a criminal conviction as well as the failing to provide or to providing false/inaccurate details which is up to £1,000 and a criminal conviction. We are trying to offer a chance to discharge your liability of the conviction through a Fixed Penalty Notice, but cannot do this unless you provide the correct details and will have to involve the police.
 
Here is the Fixed Penalty Notice that has been issued to you for the littering offence. The reference number is XXX and the details of the offence are here. The Fixed Penalty Notice is £XXX payable within 14 days, but reduced to £XXX if paid within 10 days. If payment is made this discharges your liability to the offence, but if it remains unpaid after 14 days, you could be prosecuted for the offence in a magistrates court where the fines are up to £2,500 and a criminal conviction. (If the encounter was confrontational in any way) If you have any issues with my conduct, you can go to the website here (detailed at the bottom of the FPN) to make a complaint or challenge the fine. Do you have any further questions?