Fly-Tipped Rubbish Outside Boarded-Up Property
An old sofa, a bed frame, and a mattress are among the items of fly-tipped rubbish dumped outside a boarded-up property in Ely, Cardiff.
A video shared on social media by Cardiff city councillor Neil McEvoy showed the furniture and numerous bin bags left outside the house on Wilson Road.
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), Councillor McEvoy described the situation as "unacceptable," adding:
"This has been here a good while now, according to residents."
Council Action and Landlord Notice
Cardiff Council confirmed the land is privately owned but stated it had served a notice to the landlord on 16 February, ordering the removal of the rubbish within 14 days.
The LDRS has attempted to contact the landlord for comment but has not received a response.
A council spokesperson warned that failure to remove the rubbish would lead to legal enforcement action to clear the waste and recover the associated costs from the landowner.
Fly-Tipping Statistics in Cardiff and Wales
In the past year, there were nearly 5,600 fly-tipping incidents reported in Cardiff, which the council has previously stated "harms the environment and costs taxpayers."
New figures released this week revealed that Wales experienced 48,367 fly-tipping incidents in the year ending March 2025, marking the highest number recorded in 17 years.
Approximately 71% of these reports involved household waste.
The largest increases in incidents were recorded in Denbighshire—attributed mainly to improved data capturing—as well as in the Vale of Glamorgan, Merthyr Tydfil, and Caerphilly.
During the same period, 27,749 enforcement actions were taken across Wales, representing a 9% increase compared to the previous year.
Government Measures and Funding
The government is currently reviewing fixed penalty notice limits for fly-tipping and household waste duty of care offences.
A spokesperson noted that funding has been allocated to Fly-tipping Action Wales to provide 150 cameras to local authorities. These cameras aim to target fly-tipping hotspots and assist in cleaning up communities.
Additionally, grants have been awarded to Denbighshire, Flintshire, Neath Port Talbot, and Pembrokeshire councils to support enforcement and camera-based projects.
Official Response
Huw Irranca-Davies, Deputy First Minister with responsibility for climate change, stated:
"There is never any excuse for fly tipping. It blights our streets, countryside and communities, and people the length and breadth of the country are rightly angry about it.
We are determined to clean up our communities and these new cameras will help us do just that."
