Fly-tipping is rising across the UK, but for farmers it is an expensive and often unavoidable burden that continues to worsen.
New figures show councils in England dealt with 1.15 million fly-tipping incidents in 2023–24, a 6% increase on the previous year.
While this illustrates the national scale of the problem, it masks a significant issue on private land.
Waste dumped on farmland is rarely reflected in official figures, yet responsibility for clearing it usually falls on the landowner, even when they are the victim of the offence.
Waste management specialists at BusinessWaste.co.uk say fly-tipping on farms is widespread but largely invisible, leaving many rural businesses to deal with the consequences alone.
Fly-tipping remains one of the most persistent environmental crimes in England, with an estimated 3,000 incidents taking place every day. Rising disposal costs, limited landfill capacity and inconsistent enforcement are all contributing to the growth of illegal dumping sites.
While councils record incidents on roadsides and public land, fly-tipping on farms often goes unrecorded, despite causing significant disruption and cost.
Although official statistics do not break incidents down by land type, survey data suggests fly-tipping is a common experience for farmers.
A national survey found that 52% of farmers have experienced fly-tipping on their land, while 30% reported large-scale incidents involving multiple or lorry-load dumps. Almost half said the problem has increased in recent years, pointing to a growing issue rather than one being brought under control.
For many farmers, the financial impact can be severe. In some cases, clearing fly-tipped waste can cost tens of thousands of pounds.
Removal costs typically fall on the landowner and can range from £1,000 to £100,000, particularly where hazardous materials such as asbestos are involved.
Beyond the cost, fly-tipping poses serious risks to farm operations. Hazardous waste can contaminate soil, harm livestock and damage crops, while dumped items can block access routes, interfere with machinery and create health and safety hazards for workers and visitors.
Farmers are advised to report fly-tipping incidents to their local authority as soon as possible. Councils may investigate and attempt to identify offenders, but practical support for clearing waste from private land remains limited and varies between local authorities.
Government and council guidance often focuses on prevention measures such as gates, barriers, signage, lighting or CCTV.
While these can help reduce risk, they can be costly, difficult to implement across large working farms and are not always effective in preventing repeat offences.
If fly-tipping is witnessed while taking place, farmers are advised to call 999 and provide details of those involved, the waste being dumped and any imagery, where it is safe to do so.
Incidents discovered afterwards should be reported via 101, with large-scale cases also reported to the relevant environmental regulator.
Devon farmer Winston Thorne said the problem has become increasingly damaging for family-run farms.
“My family has been farming for generations in our area. Fly-tipping was never a huge issue, but it has steadily increased throughout the years,” he said.
“We're located rurally, and much of our farm can't be covered with cameras. Unfortunately, some people like to take advantage of this and use our land to dump their waste.”
He said the cost of clearing fly-tipped waste often falls entirely on farmers.
“What's even more unfortunate is that the responsibility of the clean-up, often equating to thousands of pounds, is left to the farmers themselves. For small, family-run farms such as ours, this is highly damaging,” he said.
“I would welcome stricter fines for fly-tipping, and a policy change that benefits farmers who are targeted in these crimes.”
Farm groups argue that without tougher enforcement and policy change, fly-tipping will remain a growing burden on rural businesses and an entrenched part of wider rural crime.
