back to article Landlubber northern council shores up against boat-tipping

One landlocked council's battle with fly-tipping has taken a nautical twist this week after it had to deal with a speedboat... left in a road. The boat was found in the northern English town of Doncaster, which is just north of Sheffield in England – and about 50 miles from the sea. Doncaster Council decided to chart the …

  1. Hans Neeson-Bumpsadese Silver badge

    "In boat heaven"

    Did it keel over?

    (sorry, that was a hull of a bad joke)

    1. DJ Smiley
      Trollface

      Re: "In boat heaven"

      Someones moral compass was clearly acting up.

      I'm sure the fuss will tide over eventually

      These jokes are all a bit ropey

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: "In boat heaven"

        Oh buoy...

    2. Anonymous Coward Silver badge
      Joke

      Re: "In boat heaven"

      There was a one-legged gentleman seen in the vicinity trying to sell a faulty parrot. It was going cheep.

      1. jmch Silver badge
        Joke

        Re: "In boat heaven"

        "trying to sell a faulty parrot"

        It ain't dead it's justresting!

    3. Alister

      Re: "In boat heaven"

      I don't understand all these gybes.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: "In boat heaven"

        I need some port after reading these.

        1. Aladdin Sane

          Re: "In boat heaven"

          There's no red port left.

          1. Antron Argaiv Silver badge
            Thumb Up

            Re: "In boat heaven"

            port to port to port

            but I like "No red port left" better.

            // from the land of red right returning

            (odds are that boat has a molded in serial number and was registered at one time...)

    4. JustWondering

      Re: "In boat heaven"

      My instincts were accurate. As soon as I thought about the comments this story would attract, I got a sinking feeling. Oh well, looks like we're all in the same boat.

      1. ravenviz Silver badge
        Coat

        Re: "In boat heaven"

        These fly tippers really mast be netted...

  2. DJ Smiley

    I see the funny side....

    But how many are going to be now looking at the council wondering why they are paying someone for this?

  3. Daedalus

    One of these days...

    Councils in the UK will eventually figure out that making it difficult and/or expensive to get rid of unwanted stuff is what drives fly-tipping. Most towns in the US turn a blind eye to objects left out for collection, and by and large those objects either get picked up by the garbage collectors or by "informal" collectors aka scavengers. Leaving something out at the kerb in the UK will apparently get you a visit from all kinds of bureaucracy-driven thugs ready to rip you a new one.

    1. Rich 11

      Re: One of these days...

      Apparently? Do you have an example in mind?

      1. frank ly

        Re: One of these days...

        My local dump used to accept 'domestic' (transported in your car) loads of soil and rubble. Now they charge £2.50 a bag (and tell you the size of a standard bag).

        I wish I'd completed my garden landscaping and raised bed making activities last year instead of getting lazy.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: One of these days...

          > My local dump used to accept 'domestic' (transported in your car) loads of soil and rubble.

          > Now they charge £2.50 a bag (and tell you the size of a standard bag).

          Mine did that, and now they're embroiled in a court case to work out if it's legal (by law, they're required to accept at no charge any waste a householder may reasonably create in the running of their household*).

          * my paraphrasing of the situation

          1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

            Re: One of these days...

            "Mine did that, and now they're embroiled in a court case to work out if it's legal"

            Do you have a link to any reports of this. I'm sure a lot of us would be interested in the outcome.

            My local council instituted similar shenanigans a little while ago which included registering vehicles, limits on the size of vehicle that could visit the sites, the size of trailers and removing the rubble and plasterboard skips. Everybody told them it would increase fly tipping and end up costing them more but they went ahead. Oddly enough, fly tipping has increased.

        2. Robert Carnegie Silver badge

          Re: One of these days...

          It probably costs you more than £2.50 to drive to the council dumping facility. You're making a big objection to a small charge on what presumably ends up being expensive and unecological landfill somewhere.

          Come Brexit we shall need to produce more food inland anyway, so, stuff your landscaping, and Dig For Victory and potatoes.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: One of these days...

            Come Brexit we shall need to produce more food inland anyway

            Why? We can just buy it from developing nations currently shat upon by the EU's "circled wagons" approach to free trade that puts significant duties on those agricultural imports to benefit (mainly) French farmers.

            1. nsld

              Re: One of these days...

              "Come Brexit we shall need to produce more food inland anyway

              Why? We can just buy it from developing nations currently shat upon by the EU's "circled wagons" approach to free trade that puts significant duties on those agricultural imports to benefit (mainly) French farmers."

              We already do and much of it is duty or tariff free under the 'anything but arms' scheme.

              As for trading bloc protection its always made me laugh that so many brexit advocates in politics are in the pay of US sugar producer Tate & Lyle and seem to think the destruction of British Sugar and UK Beet farmers is a good thing to benefit a US company and Caribean farmers!

              Then we get onto how you transport your veg from far away lands to ensure its still edible and the cost of the food miles involved.

              The Minford fantasy of free trade and zero import tariffs for all will destroy UK manufacturing and farming and leave us dependent on foreign powers for our food and other criticial supplies. Not good from a jobs perspective, or food security or anything really.

          2. the hatter

            Re: One of these days...

            £2.50 *per bag* and if you're doing a bit of garden work that's readily one-to-several dozen. Not all the money in the world but as pointed out, the council is required to let householders make reasonable disposals generally, not nickel and dime it's residents.

          3. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

            Re: One of these days...

            "It probably costs you more than £2.50 to drive to the council dumping facility."

            At which point you'll be turned away because you fail on one of the numerous terms they've come up with to prevent you using the facility for which you've already paid council tax.

    2. Jason Bloomberg Silver badge

      Re: One of these days...

      I don't know if it's as bad as you paint it in the UK but I would have to admit that I'm not sure what the actual situation is if someone leaves something out with the hope of it being taken. We certainly do have a good number of officious a-holes and do-gooders around. It's not as simple as put it out and hope it disappear.

      On the kerb it's probably some kind of obstruction, and taking something on the presumption it was intended to be taken is a potentially risky venture. I dread to think what happens if someone leaves something out labelled 'take this' and then some injury or harm comes to anyone who does, who would be responsible. I thought about putting DVDs I no longer want outside for others to pick up but feared the backlash if anyone took something rated above their age.

      Lack of clarity and knowledge of the law is the real problem. I think fear and risk of it not going well means we just don't do that. Taking or giving. Even skip-diving is a dodgy proposition

      I suppose one solution is to put things out with a 'please ask to take' note. Once they've asked it's a proper transaction; 'sold (for free) as seen'.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: One of these days...

        Why not just post the item on freecycle.org? Then you don't have to leave it lying around in the hope someone wants it.

      2. Gene Cash Silver badge

        Re: One of these days...

        On the kerb it's probably some kind of obstruction, and taking something on the presumption it was intended to be taken is a potentially risky venture

        Hm. Here in the US (Orlando) I leave things "on the kerb" every Thursday night for the waste people to pick up on Friday. I pay local taxes to have them come around every week.

        The major stipulation is that you kindly break it down into chunks of 50lb or less. Heck, they even took chunks of fence and other hurricane debris recently.

        If you have something as large as a boat, there's a number to call to arrange pickup. They even accept cars.

      3. CrazyOldCatMan Silver badge

        Re: One of these days...

        It's not as simple as put it out and hope it disappear.

        Legally, *you* are responsible for disposing of stuff properly. So no - leaving it out on the kerb is not viable.

        I suppose one solution is to put things out with a 'please ask to take' note. Once they've asked it's a proper transaction; 'sold (for free) as seen'.

        If it's on your property, possibly (subject to WEEE regulations and hazardous waste/HSE regs - so not putting out old electronics or stuff with lithium batteries in). If you dump it on public property (ie the road or kerb) then no since that's a breach of the regulations.

    3. Warm Braw

      Re: One of these days...

      I can't off hand remember a time when you would have been welcome at your local recycling centre with a boat, never mind being encouraged to leave one at the kerb...

      1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

        Re: One of these days...

        "I can't off hand remember a time when you would have been welcome at your local recycling centre with a boat"

        If the site at High Wycombe is still being run on the lines it used to be you wouldn't even need to unhitch it yourself.

    4. Steve Davies 3 Silver badge

      Re: One of these days...

      Yep.

      Down here in Hampshire, they are proposing charging ratepayers to use the recycling centres.

      They seem oblivious to the fact that

      1) we have already paid for the service in our Council Tax

      2) if they do this then the council will have to spend far more than they receive in clearing up the inevitable increase in fly-tipped rubbish.

      It does not take a genius to realise what their actions will cause.

      Never mind, I'm sure the £200,000K per year chief executive will be getting his 10% bonus as usual.

      1. Karlos Fandango

        Re: One of these days...

        @Steve Davies 3

        Why visit your local Hampshire recycling centre (with its new minimal opening hours) to pay to recycle when you can put it in the black landfill bin for them to take away every two weeks.

        Not that I would do that with "DIY" waste of course...

    5. PNGuinn
      WTF?

      Re: One of these days...@ Daedalus

      Er ... no.

      My local authority will arrange a FREE collection for bulky refuse. Does it stop the tippers? Not generally.

      The enforcement team, prosecutions and large fines may convince more of 'em that it just aint worth the risk.

      And by the way, most of the fly tipped rubbish obviously arrives by car. Just too much trouble to take it the tip for free, y'know.

    6. AdamWill

      Re: One of these days...

      In other words: you're a lazy fucker who wants other people to pay so you don't have to deal with your own waste.

      You should plan for how you're going to get rid of something before you buy it. Once you buy it, it's your responsibility. I've no idea why you think it should be fine for you to just leave it outside for "the garbage collectors" to collect; what do you think garbage collectors are, magic pixies who appear from another dimension to take your shit away? They're government employees, which means *we're all fucking paying for them*. When you're done with your stuff, take it to the appropriate place for disposal / recycling. If you're not willing to do that, don't fucking buy anything you can't put in your domestic waste when you're done with it. Jesus.

      1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

        Re: One of these days...

        "In other words: you're a lazy fucker who wants other people to pay so you don't have to deal with your own waste."

        Because you're too lazy to quote properly it's impossible to be clear to whom you're replying but let's be clear about this:

        We pay council taxes for local councils to provide services. One of the services is collection and disposal of waste. (Others include running local libraries and other such facilities.) Increasingly local councils are abnegating the provision of such services.

        1. AdamWill

          Re: One of these days...

          "Because you're too lazy to quote properly it's impossible to be clear to whom you're replying but let's be clear about this:"

          Well, nah, it's because the Reg's comment system stinks. I replied to a specific comment. Any comment system worth its salt ought to be able to indicate that in its presentation. If it can't, that ain't my problem.

          1. Baldrickk

            Re: One of these days...

            Well, nah, it's because the Reg's comment system stinks. I replied to a specific comment. Any comment system worth its salt ought to be able to indicate that in its presentation. If it can't, that ain't my problem.

            As a silver badged commenter, you obviously have experience with the system and know its faults. Typing "blockquote" twice with a copy and paste is too hard is it?

            1. AdamWill

              Re: One of these days...

              If I go to the trouble of compensating for its shortcomings every time I post anything, it reduces the incentive for El Reg to make the damn system work properly. So I won't. They should fix it.

        2. AdamWill

          Re: One of these days...

          "We pay council taxes for local councils to provide services. One of the services is collection and disposal of waste. (Others include running local libraries and other such facilities.) Increasingly local councils are abnegating the provision of such services."

          Well, nah, I disagree. Councils haven't, historically, offered 'collection' of non-household waste at all. Collection of household waste makes economic sense, because every household makes it all the time; it's much more efficient (economically, environmentally, etc etc) for the council to send trucks round to collect the waste from hundreds of houses at once than for everyone to drive 30 litres of waste over to the tip or whatever. But the case for 'collection' of large items - the stuff that *can't* easily and efficiently be collected by garbage trucks from standard-sized bins - is much less obvious. It's not like every household chucks out a couch every Tuesday, regular.

          But okay, I should clarify. What annoys me is the mindset that says "well I'm done with this couch and I can't be arsed getting rid of it properly, so I'm just going to ditch it on the sidewalk and expect some other fucker to get rid of it for me" *even when* your local council or whatever doesn't actually do that. If the council of some area or other decides it wants to offer this kind of curbside pickup and that decision is endorsed by the voters (or whatever), great, fine, that's their business. But if that's *not* actually a service your council offers, then it's your damn responsibility to deal with your own garbage.

          It's worth noting that councils in the UK have had their central government funding *drastically* cut ever since the 'austerity' era started, which is the obvious reason why they're cutting back on waste services. It's not exactly surprising that if you stop funding councils properly, they won't provide proper services. But of course, everyone always wants five star service at one star cost; you try getting into politics and selling people on tax rises to pay for better waste services.

    7. CrazyOldCatMan Silver badge

      Re: One of these days...

      Councils in the UK will eventually figure out that making it difficult and/or expensive to get rid of unwanted stuff

      Most of the fly-tipping (here in Wiltshire anyway) is done by scam artists who set up companies to sell waste management to small businesses and households. And, in a move that will surprise no-one, the scam artists get paid but, instead of actually disposing of stuff properly, just drop it in some poor farmers field access road and scarper.

      They make dosh for a couple of months then fold that company and register another. And getting hit by council waste disposal actions is just another cost of business for them and something that inevitably costs less than the profit they have made.

      The thing is, it *is* up to you to ensure that the waste you produce is disposed of properly. So paying some fly-by-night group of scammers to do it can also lend you in trouble too.

  4. oomwat

    t'pain

    Ey up they missed chance to say I'm on t'boat

    1. Aladdin Sane

      Re: t'pain

      Like a boss.

  5. This post has been deleted by its author

  6. Aristotles slow and dimwitted horse

    At least their Social media team has a sense of humour about it.

    Like most Councils, they should use it as a form of planter for flowers on a roundabout.

    1. BlueAdmiral

      Re: At least their Social media team has a sense of humour about it.

      I hope they had the right permissions to use those copyrighted images

      1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

        Re: At least their Social media team has a sense of humour about it.

        Fair use for the purposes of satire?

    2. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

      Re: At least their Social media team has a sense of humour about it.

      "Like most Councils, they should use it as a form of planter for flowers on a roundabout."

      They'll only do that if someone sponsors the roundabout.

  7. Aladdin Sane
    Coat

    Surely they should give them some leeway?

  8. Ahab Returns

    Doncaster? Don't they mean Hull?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Hull? It's a boat, not a handcart

    2. pinkmouse

      Possibly, but Hull is even less north of Sheffield than Donny is. I wonder if the El Reg offices are still using Apple Maps?

      1. PNGuinn
        Trollface

        Doncaster?

        "Possibly, but Hull is even less north of Sheffield than Donny is. I wonder if the El Reg offices are still using Apple Maps?"

        Mmmm ...... 'Twas thinking that. North of Sheffield. Barnsley?

        Maybe the author's compass was playing up ... Still, Doncaster's still a sizable overland journey ....Oops.

        1. Dave Bell

          Re: Doncaster?

          Distance to the sea needs to take into account the Ouse and Trent. The canal to Goole can take 700 ton vessels. Doncaster is a lot nearer the sea than you might think

        2. J.G.Harston Silver badge

          Re: Doncaster?

          Doncaster is almost exactly north-east of Sheffield. And at 25 miles, not quite "just" either. It's a good three hours by bus.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I wonder if...

    it just fell from the back of a trailer and the owner is wondering where it is? Seen this on the M1 (or somewhere) in the past.

    1. lawndart

      Re: I wonder if...

      This sort of thing seems to happen quite regularly with small boats, or so it seems if the sailing club I belong to happens to be typical. Even to boats properly secured to the trailer.

      Last year one member who had been out to another venue with his dinghy was chagrined to find it was not attached to the trailer on return to the club. Fortunately, when backtracking the route a horse rider said she had seen a boat in the ditch a little way down the road. It survived the experience with just a couple of minor scuffs to the underside.

      1. Mark 85
        Facepalm

        Re: I wonder if...

        This sort of thing seems to happen quite regularly with small boats, or so it seems if the sailing club I belong to happens to be typical. Even to boats properly secured to the trailer.

        Doesn't anyone who own a small boat and trailer ever look in the rearview mirror? Seems to me that they should anyway just to see who's coming up behind them and if towing a boat, to make sure it's still there.

        1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

          Re: I wonder if...

          "Doesn't anyone who own a small boat and trailer ever look in the rearview mirror?"

          No point. There's a boat blocking the view.

    2. PNGuinn
      Pirate

      Re: I wonder if...

      Reminds me of a trip home from the west country many years ago.

      The headlights picked up something about a mile up the motorway. In the distance it looked all in the world like an old sailing ship in full sail.

      Getting closer I saw a car on the hard shoulder towing what had been a trailer tent. The thing had sprung its fixings and opened up like a concertina. Good thing he made the hard shoulder.

      >> it'll have to do.

  10. Don Fredricks

    Vocabulary

    Until I read the article, I had no clue what "boat tipping" might be. Here in the States, there's supposedly a pastime of misguided rural youth called "cow tipping". Unrelated, apparently.

    1. Aladdin Sane

      Re: Vocabulary

      Rural youth in the UK have been known to share the same habit.

      1. MattPi

        Re: Vocabulary

        Rural youth in the UK have been known to share the same habit.

        I hear Scotland too but with sheep. I have no idea what the sheep do with the money though. (Hey-ooo)

        1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

          Re: Vocabulary

          "I hear Scotland too but with sheep. I have no idea what the sheep do with the money though. (Hey-ooo)"

          Buy new wellies? Or is that just a Welsh thing?

    2. Alister

      Re: Vocabulary

      Here in the States, there's supposedly a pastime of misguided rural youth called "cow tipping"

      I thought you did "tractor tipping" over there?

      1. Don Fredricks

        Re: Vocabulary

        I thought you did "tractor tipping" over there?

        Only in Radiator Springs.

    3. Jim Mitchell

      Re: Vocabulary

      And here in the The States, a "fly" is something on your pants that you unzip.

      1. Denarius

        Re: Vocabulary

        indeed. I briefly thought that poms had the same problem in summer as the denizens of Oz. Disposing of the flying insects from bug zappers, fly paper, swept off floor after mass spraying or low level air pollution devices had done their thing.

        Same issue with council and greenie idiots here. Love putting up costs while feeling virtuously superior. The ratepayers pay rates and still get hit with disposal costs of household rubbish. This in a society where a kitchen chainsaw is needed to unpack some veges and minor purchases.

      2. Nick Ryan Silver badge

        Re: Vocabulary

        And here in the The States, a "fly" is something on your pants that you unzip.

        And here in the UK, a zipped fly is something we would not like on our pants. On our trousers, fine, but pants = underwear and zipped underwear down there is not a good thing.

        The reference to "boat tipping" is a play on the phrase "fly tipping" which is the illegal dumping of waste. As for why "fly tipping", well: https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-origin-of-the-term-fly-tipping

  11. TonyJ

    Giving stuff away

    Not sure if this is just regurgitating an urban myth but one of my neighbours swears if they leave something outside they want to get rid of with a "fore sale, ask inside" sign, it'll be stolen within a few hours. Put a "free to take" sign and it sits there forever.

    1. Giles C Silver badge

      Re: Giving stuff away

      My brother does that, when he bought his house it came with a lot of spare doors (they had ordered more doors than doorways?) put them on the front of the house with a for sale notices next morning they had gone.... leave them out with please take and the stuff sits there for weeks.

    2. Mark 85

      Re: Giving stuff away

      Psychology at work here on this. If it's free, most people see it as "worthless". If it's "for sale" it has value. I recall some years ago, someone put a large bag of garbage by the curb with a "for sale" sign on it and it was promptly stolen.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Don't you mean Fore Sail as in Jib?

    1. TonyJ

      "...Don't you mean Fore Sail as in Jib?..."

      I wish I did...and that I was being that clever. Alas, it was fat fingers on a mobile keyboard.

  13. PNGuinn
    Pirate

    There's a simple rational explanation for this...

    The Army have been having fun crashing their expensive new toys in Cardigan Bay lately (see another elReg piece today).

    I guess the Senior Service got jealous and crash landed one of theirs ....

    1. CrazyOldCatMan Silver badge

      Re: There's a simple rational explanation for this...

      I guess the Senior Service got jealous and crash landed one of theirs ....

      In other news, the Royal Navy are wondering where their new flagship has gone..

      (Cos it's about all they they'll be able to afford once they have finished paying for their new White Elephant^W^W aircraft carrier)

  14. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

    and about 50 miles from the sea.

    All in good fun, but for those Southern Register staff who've not been north of Watford Gap Services, Doncaster has a navigable river running through it, a city centre marina, at least half a dozen marinas within a few miles and has plenty of canal waterways within less than an hours drive.

    1. CrazyOldCatMan Silver badge

      Re: and about 50 miles from the sea.

      Doncaster has a navigable river running through it

      Boo! Lets not let mere facts get in the way of a good argument. You'll never make a journo or politician with that attitude!

      1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge
        Thumb Up

        Re: and about 50 miles from the sea.

        "You'll never make a journo or politician with that attitude!"

        Thank you :-)

  15. Terry 6 Silver badge

    left to take

    Usually I can get rid of useful stuff by leaving it outside my house. Our council doesn't seem to have the Jobsworth patrols making sure we don't put stuff on the pavement outside permitted hours. But then they do bu**er all at the best of times, so I guess that's the silver lining bit. And the stuff does go. Empty PC chassis, chairs, book cases etc. all gone to a better place.

  16. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    not near the sea

    But Doncaster is on the river Don and has at least one decent-sized lake.

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