COUNCIL chiefs have stepped up their fight against environmental crime in order to keep the district looking good for residents and visitors.

Environmental enforcement officers at Wyre Forest District Council have issued 30 on-the-spot fines - or Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) - since April this year, for offences including littering, dog fouling, fly-posting and fly-tipping.

Fines range from £75 for littering and fly-posting, to £400 for fly-tipping.

The district council is now appealing to residents to help report any environmental offences they come across as they not only make the district look untidy, but also expose people to harmful and hazardous materials.

Councillor Ian Hardiman, cabinet member for operational services, said: "We are working very hard to keep Wyre Forest safe, clean and looking good and the majority of our residents and visitors support and appreciate this.

"However, there is a minority of people who continue to drop litter in our streets, allow their pets to foul our pavements, dump waste in our beautiful open spaces and erect illegal signs and banners along our roads.

"Our message to those responsible is - we will not hesitate to use the powers we have to impose fines for the sake of all law-abiding residents."

Recently, photographs of illegally dumped packaging alongside what appeared to be kitchen units in a local beauty spot, were uploaded to Facebook.

The council's enforcement officers gathered evidence and were able to trace the perpetrators.

If you are not sure if a person disposing of waste is authorised to do so, call the Environment Agency on 03708 506506.

Cllr Hardiman added: "We would like to ask all residents to help us keep our environment safe, clean and looking good by reporting such incidents by visiting our website or calling 01562 732528.

"We will always treat any information passed to us confidentially."