The Minister was speaking at a joint conference hosted by the Welsh Government and the Fly-tipping Action Wales partnership which explored the actions that can be taken to stamp out fly-tipping in Wales.
During the conference the Minister launched a new consultation that considered how fly–tipping should be dealt with in the future. The Welsh Government’s existing strategy in conjunction with the Fly-tipping Action Wales partnership comes to an end in 2012.
The Minister said: "Fly-tipping is a serious crime. Not only is it a dreadful eye sore it can also pose a real danger to people living locally, and it is far too common in some of our more deprived urban areas and remote rural areas.
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"I believe that by dealing effectively with fly tipping, we can make a real difference to the quality of life within communities here in Wales. Over recent years we have made good progress and have seen some real successes but the challenge now is to build upon that success.
"The consultation I am launching explores how we can work effectively to achieve a fly-tipping free Wales. We recognise that no one organisation can achieve this alone and that is why I am inviting comments and ideas from all our partners so we can make this policy work for Wales."
Chris Mills, Director of Environment Agency Wales, the body responsible for coordinating Fly-tipping Action Wales which brings over 50 organisations together, said: "Fly-tipping is a problem that affects us all in Wales. Despite considerable efforts from all the organisations involved, there were more than 36,000 reported cases of fly-tipping last year, that’s an average of one fly-tipping case every 15 minutes in Wales.
"With the most recent clean-up costs reported to be topping more £2.1 million each year, we are holding this conference with the Welsh Government to look at further ways of tackling the problem. We welcome the Minister's consultation and we hope the outcomes of the conference will prove invaluable in determining the way forward."
(CD/GK)
