KIRKLEES residents have to be the council's eyes and ears when it comes to fly tipping.

That's the stance taken by Kirklees Council officials, anxious to prevent rubbish tipping.

Workers charged with clearing the streets of dumped rubbish are enlisting householders' help.

A council spokesman said: "The sooner we are told where it is, the sooner we can get it removed."

A three-strong team has been introduced as part of a new harder stance on litter louts.

Since they started in April, the team have imposed 12 fixed penalty notices on culprits seen throwing litter out of their cars as well as cautioning a woman for throwing household rubbish over her garden wall.

They are currently pursuing three prosecutions for fly tipping.

Dumpers favour quiet roads to offload their household waste, building scrap, tyres, furniture, junk or fridges and freezers.

"The problem we have got is everybody wants us to prosecute fly tippers, but in the majority of cases there's no evidence," said the spokesman.

"And where it's a witness job, people are not willing to go to court and be cross examined. It's quite a frightening thing."

He said the region was relatively clean but more could be done and his workers needed information from the public.

"The amounts of fly tipping in Kirklees is less than in many, many other districts. They just tend to be small bits and bats, generally.

"This can be household waste or builders rubble. We don't seem to have any serious major industrial tipping."

He said household tipping mystified him.

"These people appear to have vehicles. If a vehicle is available they can tip it for free at a household waste site."

Information about dumped litter can be either phoned through to 01484 414700 or 01484 223156.