Doncaster 12th for hazardous fly tipping in Yorkshire

Wakefield ranks as the Yorkshire and The Humber council with the highest rate of hazardous fly-tipping, with 4.57 incidents per 10,000 people in 2024/25.

The local authority recorded 6,934 illegal waste dumping incidents, and 2.42% of these were deemed to include hazardous material. The area saw two incidents of fly-tipped clinical waste, five incidents of illegal asbestos dumping and 161 occasions of fly-tipped chemical drums, oil, or fuel incidents. The council also ranks 24th in the whole of England.

In second place is North East Lincolnshire, which saw 65 hazardous waste dumping incidents, 3.05% of all fly-tipping in the area. With an estimated population of 159,911, this gives the area a score of 4.06 hazardous incidents per 10,000 people. The local authority saw 29 asbestos incidents, seven incidents assigned as chemical drums, oil, or fuel incidents, and 29 logged as clinical waste.

Bradford takes the third spot with a rate of 2.54 hazardous fly-tipping incidents per 10,000 people in 2024/25. The local authority is home to 563,605 residents and saw 23 clinical waste dumping incidents, 67 asbestos incidents and 53 involving chemical drums, oil, or fuel. Hazardous incidents made up 0.73% of the total 19,697 incidents of illegally dumped waste.

Every council in Yorkshire and The Humber recorded at least one incident of hazardous fly-tipping, but North Lincolnshire sits at the bottom overall with just three cases, including one of asbestos and two of chemical drums, oil, or fuel dumping.

Yorkshire and The Humber ranks fifth in England’s hazardous fly-tipping hotspots. Overall, the region saw 1.46 incidents per 10,000 people on average, around 0.83% of all fly-tipping incidents classed as hazardous waste. In comparison, London took the top spot with 2.68 incidents per 10,000 people, and the North East sits at the bottom of the table with just 1.05 incidents per 10,000 people.

Why is hazardous waste dumping dangerous?

Mark Hall, Doncaster waste management expert at BusinessWaste.co.uk, said: “All illegal waste dumping is damaging to the environment and local community, but hazardous waste is particularly concerning as it contains toxic, persistent, or reactive materials.

“Substances such as asbestos, oils, chemicals, and fuel are not only more toxic but also often require specialist handling and disposal. When dumped illegally, they can contaminate soil and water, release harmful particles into the air, and create safety risks for both the public and council workers.

“As hazardous waste disposal can be more expensive and logistically complex, this sometimes leads people to fly-tip this type of waste to cut costs or time. Incidents can be down to individuals or linked to rogue waste operators who are paid to remove materials but then instead dispose of them illegally to cut costs and maximise profit.

“If you come across any kind of fly-tipping, keep your distance, don’t disturb it, and immediately report it to the council, who will be able to assess the material and dispose of it appropriately.”