A NUMBER of Oldham’s fly tipping hot spots will be put under surveillance but new CCTV cameras for use in rural areas won’t be initially deployed in Saddleworth.
Four sites have been chosen by the local authority for the battery operated cameras that can be installed in specific locations where power is an issue.
The Independent has been asked not to reveal the proposed areas. But OMBC has confirmed Saddleworth, which continues to be blighted by bulk dumping, is not on the list.
A spokesperson said: “All the hotspots have been identified through data and the number of service requests.
“As set out in the report we’ll be concentrating on those areas but there is nothing to say we won’t deploy cameras, services etc in other areas in the future.”
The ‘spy’ cameras are among the initiatives contained in year two of the local authority’s Don’t Trash Oldham (DTO) campaign.
Other proposals pertinent to Saddleworth include the preservation of the Parish’s history, the planting of more wildflower meadows and gully cleaning.
The Council will also operate a ‘betterment’ programme of activity, supporting communities looking after their neighbourhoods.
Two teams will be deployed including one for Royton & Shaw, Saddleworth & Lees and East Oldham.
They will carry out tasks such as: grass cutting and hedge trimming; fence/railing painting; milestone markers repainted/cleaned; and gully cleaning.
Many of Saddleworth’s Victorian milestone markers have become rusty relics due to lack of maintenance.
But pressure from residents and ward councillors have helped bring about a reversal in the decline with milestones on the Scouthead and Austerlands border and Denshaw recently restored.
The Council say their DTO project has been one of the council’s most successful campaigns over the last year.
More than 4,000 streets and alleyways have been cleaned and an extra 284 tonnes of waste have been removed on top of what council staff carry out daily.
Fixed penalty notices have been handed to 381 people while another 44 have appeared in court for environmental crimes with a further 77 cases pending.
As part of the campaign officers identified 38 hotspot areas, including four in rural spots- where more than 60 per cent of fly-tipping incidents were reported.
Councillor Amanda Chadderton, Leader of Oldham Council, said: “People who dump rubbish and waste bring our communities down.
“Sadly, no council in the country can stop people from doing it but we are committed to delivering a cleaner, greener and safer borough.
“Our plans for year two of Don’t Trash Oldham build on the work we have done and the data and information we have collected over the last 12 months.
“We need our communities to work with us to keep the areas where they live and work clean and report people who blight them so we can take action.”
For more information on Don’t Trash Oldham – and to report environmental crimes – visit www.oldham.gov.uk/donttrasholdham
Giving the cast iron way markers a coat of paint certainly improves their appearance and that of the area; although I notice that they’ve missed at least one of them, (and I can’t remember where.)
It’s these small touches that sometimes have more impact than grand gestures.