Fly-tippers in Brierley Hill are being targeted after new specialist surveillance cameras were agreed at a dumping hotspot.

A deployable CCTV camera is being installed in Bank Street after complaints about fly-tipping. It will be in place for several months.

The council had pledged to invest an extra £150,000 as part of its budget commitments for the next financial year. It includes £60,000 over three years for 12 more deployable cameras, making a total 24 for use.

The remainder will be spent upgrading all traffic cameras across the borough. Brierley Hill ward councillor Adam Davies, who requested the cameras for Bank Street and a number of other fly-tipping hotspots around his ward, said: "There is absolutely no excuse for fly-tipping. It's utterly thoughtless, brings down our streets and green spaces, and is an unnecessary burden on the tax payer to clear up afterwards.

"That's why I requested these cameras to help tackle this problem spot near Bank Street, as well as submitting camera requests for a number of other fly-tipping hotspots around the ward."

Councillor Laura Taylor-Childs, cabinet member responsible for community safety, added:

“This extra investment is worth every penny if we can catch more people in the act of fly-tipping. The state-of-the-art technology is capable of capturing detailed images of people dumping their rubbish, which helps us to prosecute them.

“The cameras in place at this fly-tipping hotspot in Brierley Hill means there really is nowhere to hide if you are breaking the law.”

The cameras will be in position at key points and will be feeding back images to the CCTV control room.

The council has issued £1,675 in fines for fly-tipping caught on CCTV over the past six months.

People can help the council by ‘naming and shaming’ people caught on CCTV as part of the authority’s You’ve Been Shamed initiative.

Images are posted on the council’s website and people can report individuals they recognise anonymously.

People face fines of up to £400 if they are caught fly-tipping. Councillor Steve Clark, deputy leader of the council and cabinet member for finance, said:

“Fly-tipping is not only illegal it causes a horrible blight on our borough. This is a significant financial commitment that will help address that.

“We spend thousands of pounds clearing up this mess up which ultimately hits honest residents in the pocket. This is a far more cost-effective way of tackling the problem.

“Hopefully the cameras in Brierley Hill will make people think twice, but if they do dump rubbish there illegally, they can expect a hefty fine.”

For more information visit dudley.gov.uk.