The 80-year-old arable farmer is legally obliged to remove the rubbish from his St Albans farm or potentially face prosecution, despite being a victim of the crime, and had received estimates of between £40,000 to £50,000 for the clear-up.
Since the fly-tip last summer, which includes hazardous waste, the NFU has been pushing the farmer’s case in the media, engaging with leading figures in government, MPs, Police and Crime Commissioners, police leaders, councillors and the Environment Agency.
Archie Ford launched a Crowdfunder after reading about the farmer’s plight in the news. More than £50,000 was raised in just three days.
On Monday 9 March, Mr Ford travelled 80 miles from his home near Salisbury, Wiltshire to St Albans to meet the famer for the first time, along with neighbouring farmer Will Dickinson, NFU Hertfordshire County Adviser Freya Samuel-Smith and MP for Harpenden and Berkhamsted Victoria Collins.
Archie Ford (right) with Will Dickinson and Freya Samuel-Smith.
'A real-life nightmare'
The farmer, who wants to remain anonymous, said: “I was facing a real-life nightmare, but I’ve been blown away by the support I’ve received from so many people. This has restored my faith in humanity.
“It’s been a pleasure to meet Archie and to thank him for everything. I am so grateful to everyone who has supported me. I had no idea what was going to happen to me.”
The farmer said he has been given different quotes for the cost of clearing the rubbish, ranging from £40,000 to close to £50,000.
Archie Ford with his dog. Photograph: Archie Ford.
'Things need to change'
Mr Ford said: “I knew I had to do something as soon as I read this farmer’s story – the situation he was facing was so unfair – and I have been amazed by how many people have supported the Crowdfunder.
“But not everybody can rely on a fundraising campaign, and things need to change.
“It has been great to be here, to meet the farmer and NFU representatives to learn more about fly-tipping.
“The situation is out of control, with organised criminal gangs taking advantage of a deeply flawed system, and our hardworking farmers are suffering as a result.
“I think it is outrageous what is happening to our countryside and that victims of this crime are having to pay thousands of pounds to clear up the mess.
“I fully support the NFU’s calls for change and the amount of people who supported the Crowdfunder, show the public want this too.”
Call for stronger sentences
Will Dickinson has himself been a victim of fly-tipping on dozens of occasions.
The former NFU Hertfordshire County Chair has been supporting his friend in dealing with the ordeal and is playing a leading role in the NFU’s efforts to secure change.
Mr Dickinson said: “There are so few arrests for fly-tipping and on the rare occasions when somebody is convicted, they receive a fine which is less than the cost of hiring a skip.
"We need stronger sentences to act as a deterrent, or criminal gangs will continue to wreak havoc on the countryside with impunity.”
The most recent Defra figures reveal a 9% rise in fly-tipping to 1.26 million incidents in England last year, the fifth successive annual increase.
The data excludes the large-scale incidents dealt with by the Environment Agency and most incidents on private land.
The Crowdfunder has now raised more than £58,000. At the request of the St Albans farmer, money raised after the clearance on his farm has been paid for will be used to support other victims of fly-tipping in Hertfordshire.
Need to work together
The NFU is calling for all authorities with responsibility for tackling fly-tipping to work closely together to secure more arrests and convictions and for penalties to be more proportionate, reflecting the impact of the crime .A simple reporting mechanism needs to be developed so that farmers and land managers only have to report a fly-tipping incident once.
Currently victims may have to report incidents to multiple authorities, which is time consuming, confusing and frustrating.
The NFU believes the government and waste sector must do more to raise awareness of householders’ responsibilities for their waste. Too much householder waste falls into the hands of third parties who then fly-tip that material.
