A CRACKDOWN on fly-tipping and litter needs to become a New Year resolution, an Assembly member says.

Darren Millar, AM for Clwyd West, declared roadside litter and fly-tipping in the Conwy area as the worst he had seen.

Mr Millar shared photos of the problem after he made a trip around Abergele and Kinmel Bay.

“These photos, which I took on a journey of just a few miles, show just the tip of the iceberg,” he said.

“The increase in the problem seems to have coincided with the introduction of fortnightly bin collections and there isn’t a week that goes by that I don’t receive complaints. The situation is totally unacceptable and unless it is addressed then it could have a detrimental impact on our tourism industry and on wildlife.

“Conwy must rethink its bin collection cuts and organise an area-wide litter and fly-tipping clean-up as soon as possible.”

Conwy Council (CCBC) carried out a clean-up on Rhuddlan Road, Abergele, and St Asaph Avenue in Kinmel Bay last week.

Cllr Dave Cowans, cabinet member for highways, environment and sustainability, said: “There is no excuse for fly-tipping and local residents should not have to tolerate this type of behaviour by a small minority of irresponsible people who break the law.

“Cleaning up fly-tipping costs us all money; it’s dangerous and potentially harmful to health; it spoils our enjoyment of the surroundings and can cause serious pollution of the environment.

“We will continue to respond to and investigate any reports of fly-tipping, and will prosecute anyone found to be responsible.

“Throwing fast food litter or other rubbish on the roadside from a vehicle is criminal behaviour and cannot be justified or defended by blaming a change to bin collections.”