South Derbyshire District Council has announced a crackdown on environmental crime by increasing the fines for offences such as fly-tipping and litter by up to £1,000.

Council officers issue dozens of Fixed Penalty Notices each year to deal with offences which would otherwise end up in court.

Fixed Penalties enable offenders to discharge their liability for the offences by paying a fine rather than facing a criminal conviction.

National law changed earlier this year to allow councils to increase these fines, and South Derbyshire District Council is one of the first in the country to respond.

Following approval at the Council's Environment and Development Services Committee earlier this month, the following charges will apply:

• Fly-tipping fines will increase from £400 up to £1,000.
• Breach of householder duty of care fines (giving your waste to someone who then dumps it illegally) will increase from £400 to £500.
• Littering fines will increase from £75 to £150.
• Graffiti and flyposting (putting up lots of posters) fines will increase from £75 to £150.
• Fines for distributing any free printed material without consent (handing out flyers) will increase from £75 to £150.

Councillor Stephen Taylor, Chair of the Environment and Development Services Committee said: "Residents regularly tell us that problems such as fly-tipping and litter infuriate them. We're already doing lots to prevent offences and punish offenders. This is another way of helping to change behaviours.

"The council has been focused for some time on preventing fly-tipping and we've been extremely successful in doing so. Reported incidents are at their lowest level for eight years and we've been catching people from Derby, Nottingham and the West Midlands, some of whom are prolific offenders."