Litter

Dropping litter

It is an offence to drop, throw, deposit or leave litter under Section 87 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Litter includes all smoking related litter, such as cigarette ends and discarded chewing gum.

You can be fined

We will take action against those who drop litter by issuing a Fixed Penalty Notice. A Fixed Penalty Notice is an on the spot fine of £75.

If you are given a Fixed Penalty Notice you have 14 days to pay the fine. Money collected from Fixed Penalty Notices gets put back into continued tracking and prevention of environmental crimes.

If you wish to discuss your Fixed Penalty Notice please contact Recovery Services on 0117 922 3835 who will be more than happy to answer your questions.

If you fail to pay the Fixed Penalty Notice of £75, we will take prosecution action against you in the Magistrates Court. The maximum penalty on conviction for this offence is £2,500. If found guilty, you will also be given a criminal record.

What can you do?

Use the litter bins provided in the streets. Do not leave single black bin bags out on the street as this is classed as littering. Store your waste correctly and use the appropriate services for your waste.

If you see litter that has been thrown you can use our online form to report it.

Fast food

Fast food litter is the most rapidly increasing type of litter on streets across Britain, increasing from 5% to a staggering 22% in four years.

Bristol's city centre has an estimated 30 thousand people each weekend night who come here to enjoy a drink. A number of people will stop for a night time snack. Up to one and a half tonnes of fast food litter ends up littered on the streets of Bristol each weekend night - we have a 24 hour cleaning team to deal with the problem. Whole burgers, half eaten pizzas and salads all decorate the streets until dawn when the cleaning crews take it away before the city's inhabitants see a thing.

We would like to remind you that if you drop fast food litter on the pavement or road it is classed as littering - and if caught, you could get an on the spot fine. Please be responsible about how you dispose of your fast food litter by using litter bins.

Smoking related litter

We would like to encourage you to be responsible about how you dispose of your cigarette butts by stubbing them out and using: litter bins, public ashtrays or portable ashtrays. If you would like to request a free stubbi (a portable ashtray) please contact us.

I run a business - what can I do?

A frontage that is heavily littered does not provide a very positive image. We are trying to encourage businesses to make sure that staff and customers do not drop cigarettes on the road or pavement. Businesses can do this by:

• Installing appropriate cigarette disposal facilities outside your premises
• Promoting the use of portable ashtrays to smokers within your organisation.
• Signing up to the Tidy Business Standards awards scheme. We will work with you and support you in achieving the awards
• Putting a "Smoking Policy" in place within your organisation. Consider whether or not this covers smoking and dropping litter on the public highway outside your building
• Encouraging a litter-conscious attitude and code of conduct amongst staff, customers and visitors.

If your staff or customers drop litter (including cigarette litter) on or outside your premises you could be issued with a Litter Clearing Notice. This requires the owner or occupier of land to clear it of litter. Failure to comply can lead to a maximum fine of £2,500.

Your staff and customers could also receive a fixed penalty notice for £75 if caught. If it is not paid within 14 days, prosecution can lead to a maximum fine of £2,500. There are also financial and legal penalties that could affect you.