TWO vehicles were seized and a number of drivers issued with notices and traffic offence reports following a recent police initiative on rural flytipping.

The two-day Operation Eyeball took place on the A59 near Broughton on June 3 and on the A61in Ripon on June 4 and was a multi agency task involving North Yorkshire Police and Craven District Council, along with Trading Standards, Harrogate council, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.

Of the 170 vehicles stopped for checks (99 in Ripon and 71 in Skipton), 11 were issued with prohibition notices, four more were seized immediately, and seven traffic offence reports were issued for a variety of offences.

Prohibition notices were issued for defects including brake pads, tyres, emissions and lights. TORs were issued for defective tyres, defective lights and no MOT.

Councillor Carl Lis, Craven District Council’s lead member for Greener Craven, said: “We’re determined to tackle fly-tipping in our district and crack down on those individuals who choose to spoil our beautiful countryside.

“I’m pleased that we’re able to work with other local authorities and the police to take action against these offenders. Here in Craven we have been successful in prosecuting a number of fly-tippers recently and we hope Operation Eyeball will help bring about further prosecutions in the future.”

Sergeant Stuart Grainger of North Yorkshire Police’s Rural Taskforce added: “The operations in Ripon and Skipton were successful examples of how we can work closely with local authorities and other organisations to effectively deter fly-tipping and deal with motor vehicle offences.

“These high-visibility deployments send a clear message that it’s unacceptable to use defective vehicles on our roads, and anyone trying to fly-tip waste in our rural areas will quickly be identified.

“Operation Eyeball also means sharing expertise and evidence with our partners, allowing us to tackle offenders and ultimately bring them to justice.

“We also rely on the public to act as our ‘eyes and ears’ – if you find or witness fly-tipping, wherever it is, record as many details about the incident and the waste as you can, and report it to your local authority or via the gov.uk website. This will help us take action against those responsible and stop them fly-tipping in the future.

“It is also important to think carefully about who you use to dispose of waste for you. Are they properly licensed? If not, your waste may end up being fly-tipped and enquiries may lead right back to your door.”

Further proactive operations will take place across North Yorkshire in the coming months.