A huge patch of land in the middle of Cardiff left covered in dumped rubbish will costs thousands to clean up. The abandoned land, which lies under the A4234 Central Link flyover in Butetown, has been targeted by fly-tippers for years with huge piles of waste left strewn across it.
In April, WalesOnline reported how the site, which is seen by thousands of people driving or travelling into Cardiff by train every day, was carpeted in filth, with sofas, bathtubs, wardrobes, mattresses and mounds of other discarded items all dumped there.
However, the land is still covered in rubbish today, with seemingly no efforts yet made to clean it up. Get the latest news from across Cardiff sent straight to your inbox for free by signing up to our newsletters.
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Photos taken at the site on Thursday, July 28 show more items dumped, including furniture, building materials and garden waste have been discarded there. Piles of broken bikes, children’s toys and car tyres are tangled within wire and electric cables, while several mattresses are also scattered around the stretch of land, which runs alongside the adjacent railway track fence.
Vast amounts of building material including skirting boards, window frames, bricks and sacks of insulation material have also been dumped, while crumpled tents and broken bed frames are also visible among the mountains of waste. Some homeless people have also pitched tents on the site under the overpass.
Cardiff Council has confirmed that the land is privately owned. It is also understood that the site - which formerly housed Stratstone Volvo dealership - is set to be sold by the landowner, while it is thought that the rubbish will cost around £20,000 to clear up.
A report published by the Welsh Government in December 2021 revealed that fly-tipping had increased by 22% across Wales in the past year, and that Cardiff was the top area in Wales for issuing fixed penalty notices to tackle the problem. In February 2022, a man was fined almost £1,000 for fly-tipping a number of recycling and rubbish bags in Leckwith, while in May, a former bus driver from St Mellons dumped waste including furniture, building material and chicken shop rubbish off the M4 which cost the landowner £20,000 to remove.
While the area off Tyndall Street is not their land, Cardiff council previously issued a statement condemning fly-tipping in the city, describing it as a "blight on communities". They also warned that those caught doing it will received a fixed penalty notice or could end up in court and fined tens of thousands of pounds.
A spokesman for the council said: “Fly-tipping is completely unnecessary; it damages the environment and costs the taxpayer a significant amount of money each year. The Council’s preferred option when dealing with small scale fly tipping is the use of Fixed Penalty Notices rather than prosecuting through the court. Taking these matters to court can be very expensive and often the penalty given by the court does not justify the cost incurred.
“Since the powers were adopted in August 2018, 363 fixed penalty notices of £400 have been issued and eleven cases prosecuted through the courts and we will continue to investigate these matters, as fly tipping is a blight on the communities that we all live in. If anyone witnesses fly tipping in their community, we advise that you don’t make contact with those who are carrying it out but take details of the time, location and the registration details of the vehicle and report it to the C2C on 02920 872087.”
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