A COUNCILLOR has condemned the actions of fly-tippers who are using a Newport cemetery to dump their rubbish.

Newport City Council had launched an investigation into the misuse of St Woolos Cemetery site after receiving complaints of overflowing bins.

In the past month council officers have found commercial waste – including an old sink and toilet – in large bins that are reserved for discarded flowers.

Councillor Matthew Evans, leader of the council’s Conservative opposition, described the discovery in his Allt-yr-yn ward as “unacceptable”.

“Fly-tipping is the bane of a lot people’s lives across Newport and I’ve raised a number of concerns about a lack of enforcement action,” he said.

“But fly-tipping at a cemetery is totally unacceptable. People need to be far more considerate about the environment and I’m saddened to see opportunists utilising [the cemetery] in this way.

“Residents have got good recycling facilities which they should be using but fly-tippers don’t seem to care at all about where they dump their rubbish.”

Several proposals to tackle the problem have been suggested by the council, including moving the bins, reducing their numbers and changing their sizes.

Waste enforcement officers will also be examining the dumped materials to see if there is enough evidence to lead to prosecution.

Newport carried out the highest number of enforcement actions – 3,028 – recorded in the Gwent region in 2016/17.

Councillor Roger Jeavons, cabinet member for streetscene, said: “It is hard to believe that members of the public are purposely visiting our cemeteries in order to dump their rubbish in the large bins on site.

“Staff are on schedule to ensure the grass is cut and the bins emptied.

“We hope if anyone has information about who may be fly-tipping at the cemeteries they will report them to the council so we can investigate.”

Residents can report fly-tipping in confidence on the Pride in Newport dedicated phone line on 07973698582 or by emailing info@newport.co.uk.