Thousands protest over fly-tip spots in Black Country

The culprits have been branded 'despicable' by one council chief in Dudley, where the issue of fly-tipping is on the rise.

And it comes as Walsall Council prepares to offer residents £100 rewards for reporting fly-tippers.

In Wolverhampton, there have been 3,162 cases reported since April, compared with 3,054 for the whole of the 2012-13 financial year.

And in Dudley, there have been 538 reports since April – up from 527 during the same period the previous year.

Councillor Tracy Wood, cabinet member for environment and culture, said: "People who dump rubbish in the borough are despicable and not only cause an eyesore, but leave the hardworking taxpayer out of pocket."

In Walsall, which has been hit by a number of high-profile incidents in recent years, there were 448 complaints this financial year so far – an increase from 336 in the same period in 2012. A six-month trial of the £100 incentive scheme to cut down on fly-tipping has been given the full backing by Walsall Council's cabinet. And covert cameras were installed at a hotspot in Bull Lane, Moxley, last year.

Council leader Mike Bird said fly-tipping was 'unacceptable'.

In South Staffordshire, vans were stopped and searched by enforcement officers as part of a county-wide crackdown. Council bosses received 188 reports of fly-tipping since April, compared with 272 in the 12 months of the previous financial year.

Sixty two tons of rubbish was dumped in Wombourne and Himley in September, leaving a clean-up bill of more than £6,000. Most of the 32 tons of rubbish was dumped on a public right of way leading to Wombourne Sewage Works, off Bridgnorth Road.

The number of reports in Wolverhampton has nearly halved since its peak in 2008-09 when there were 5,862. In 2011-12 it reached a low of 2,587 but the figure has risen again.

Cabinet member Councillor John Reynolds said: "We will not hesitate to take action against offenders."