NO prosecutions for flytipping were made by Bury Council over a 12-month period - despite an average of more than four instances being reported every day.

Between May 2013 and May 2014, there were nearly 1,700 complaints over rubbish.

However, council chiefs insist there has not been a rise in flytipping incidents since grey bin collections changed to three-weekly last October.

Officers say it has been a lack of evidence and information given to them which has hindered legal action.

Latest figures, obtained under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, reveal 1,670 instances of flytipping were reported to Bury Council’s waste management department: an average of 4.5 a day.

The information shows that, over the same period, no prosecutions were made and only one caution was issued.

The Radcliffe resident who submitted the FOI request, who declined to be named, said: “The figures speak for themselves as to why litter and flytipping in the borough is so bad.

“That is 1,670 clean-ups done at cost to the council, but no money recovered from offenders nor anything done to stop this kind of behaviour.

“Bury Council keeps pleading poverty, but how many thousands of pounds of wasted council cash needs to be spent before positive action is taken?”

The resident submitted the request for information on May 21 last year but only received a response from the council, even though it was dated June 9, last Wednesday.

Also revealed are the authority’s estimated costs for disposing of litter, which range from £7 for a single bag to £115 for a van-load.

If the council dealt with all instances reported in the period, this could have cost taxpayers anything between £11,690 and £192,050.

In October, Bury became the first borough in the country to collect grey bins for non-recyclable household rubbish every three weeks, instead of fortnightly.

Despite some residents complaining of overflowing bins, abandoned rubbish and vermin, a spokesman for Bury Council denied there had been a spike in flytipping since the change.

He said: “Fly tipping is not a new problem and has not increased due to the recent changes to the household waste collection service.

“It is unfortunate that the few people who do flytip items such as furniture, tyres, asbestos and building materials do not give consideration to their neighbours or their local community.”

The spokesman said the council’s biggest challenge in bringing about a successful prosecution is collecting sufficient evidence.

He added: “Where evidence is provided this will be acted upon. Action could include education and awareness visits, issuing a caution or prosecution as a last resort.

“Where fly tipping relates to household furniture and goods, the council has a recycling and enforcement team as well as environment officers that carry out targeted action especially in known hotspots.

“This will involve visiting properties to provide help and advice, issuing cautions and sending out leaflets and letters to raise awareness.”

A resident of Seddon Street, Radcliffe, said flytipping has been a problem since he moved there in 2001 but claimed the amount of rubbish dumped has quadrupled since October.

The 55-year-old said: “Before the changes the main flytipping would be things like abandoned furniture, but now the biggest problem is bin bags.

“It is a frustrating, never ending problem and is really frustrating. I am forever trying to tidy up and ring Bury Council on a weekly basis.

“They do come and clear the rubbish but I am told there is nothing they can do unless I can identify the person doing it.”