Preventing waste
Preventing Flytipping
It is all of our responsibility to ensure that our waste is disposed of correctly. Flytipping is a crime.
Could I accidently be flytipping?
Flytipping could happen without you ever intending for your waste to end up in the wrong place.
For example, you might pay someone to take away an old sofa, clear waste from your garden or remove rubbish after a house move. You might assume that once someone has taken your waste, it is no longer your problem.
However, householders have a responsibility to take reasonable steps to make sure their waste is handled properly. This is called Duty of Care. If you use someone who is not appropriately authorised and your waste is later fly tipped, you could face enforcement action.
Things to watch out for
- Hiring a “man with a van” or another private waste collector without checking if they have waste carrier licence
- Responding to waste-removal adverts on social media or online marketplaces from businesses who do not seem to have a legitimate presence
- Leaving unwanted items beside bins or outside a property in the hope that someone will collect them
- Choosing a waste service simply because it is much cheaper than other options- a very low price does not prove that someone is operating illegally, but it should make you stop and check.
Remember: handing your waste to someone else does not mean you no longer have any responsibility for it. Check before you hand it over.
What is a waste carrier licence?
You may have heard the terms waste carrier, waste transporter, waste broker or waste management licence and wondered what they actually mean.
The simple version is: if someone is collecting or transporting waste for you, they will generally need to be appropriately registered with SEPA.
SEPA's terminology changed in April 2026, and waste carriers are now referred to as waste transporters. Businesses that arrange waste collection on behalf of others may also need to be registered as waste brokers.
Waste sites that receive, store, treat, recycle or dispose of waste may need a separate environmental authorisation or permit, depending on the activity.
This means that there are two important things to think about:
- Who's taking my waste? Check that they are appropriately registered to transport it.
- Where is my waste going? Make sure it is going to a legitimate site that is authorised to receive that type of waste.
You don't need to understand all the different types of environmental authorisation yourself. SEPA provides the detailed information and registers you can use to check.
How can I get rid of my waste legally?
It can be confusing to know exactly where different types of waste should go.
Before paying someone to take your waste away, check whether there is a simpler or cheaper option available to you.
Depending on what you have, you may be able to:
- Put it in your household waste or recycling collection
- Take it to a local recycling or household waste facility
- Arrange a bulky waste collection through your local authority
- Donate or reuse an item instead of throwing it away (have a look at the Circular Communities Scotland's Reuse Map or Zero Waste Scotland's reuse tool to find places where unwanted items may be reused rather than thrown away).
- Use a specialist disposal service for certain types of waste
Can't dispose of your waste yourself? Take a few minutes to check who you are giving it to.
Remember: STOP → CHECK → KEEP PROOF
STOP
Could you dispose of the waste yourself through your local authority, a recycling centre or another legitimate route?
CHECK
If you need to use a private waste service:
- Ask who will be collecting your waste.
- Is the person you are hiring a well-known contractor, who is visible online, with easy to access contact details such as a phone number and an email address?
- Ask for their waste transporter registration details.
- Check that their registration is valid on SEPA's public register.
- Ask where your waste will be taken.
- Make sure they know what type of waste you have and how much there is.
- Be cautious of services offering prices that seem unrealistically cheap.
KEEP PROOF
- Keep a receipt, invoice or other record of the collection.
- Keep details of who collected your waste.
- Where appropriate, ask for information showing where your waste was taken.
Doing these checks can help reduce the risk of your waste being illegally dumped.
Reducing waste
One way to reduce the quantity of litter is to reduce the materials that someone could drop or leave behind. The most common items littered on our streets are smoking related which is followed by food and drink packaging. Legislation is already being progressed such as the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging, and The Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024 which aim to reduce litter. We are working towards a more circular economy – one where we keep materials flowing though the economy rather than wasting resource and using new natural resources.
We can reduce our own consumption and use of packaging by re-using items such as carrier bags and coffee cups, including remembering to use those we already have. There are often discounts for bringing your own reusable too. Hubbub have stated that although 69% of people own a reusable coffee cup only 1 in 6 say they remember to use it every time they buy a hot drink. There is advice on how we as individuals can reduce waste, consume responsibly, and live more sustainably in the Resources section and through the links below.
Marine litter
Marine litter can come from both land and sea. Litter can reach the marine environment through rivers, drains, wind and activities at sea, so preventing it starts on land.
We can all help by:
- Putting litter in a bin or taking it home if there isn’t one, especially after activities such as beach picnics.
- Keeping waste secure so it cannot blow or wash away.
- Disposing of waste through the correct recycling or waste route.
- Taking extra care near rivers, beaches, drains and other waterways.
- Never flushing items that should go in a bin.
Communities can also help by taking part in litter picks, reporting litter hotspots and encouraging others to keep waste out of the environment.
Roadside litter
Roadside litter can be difficult and dangerous to remove, and every year doing so puts roadside workers lives at risk, so preventing it in the first place is important.
We can all help by:
- Taking litter home or putting it in a bin.
- Keeping a small bag or container in the car for rubbish.
- Never throwing litter from a vehicle, even if you think it is biodegradable- for example, an apple core.
- Making sure waste and other items are securely covered when being transported.
- Planning ahead for longer journeys so there is somewhere to dispose of waste.
A small amount of litter thrown from a vehicle may seem unimportant, but it can quickly become part of a much bigger problem.
Vapes
Vapes should never be littered or put in a general waste or recycling bin. If the battery is built into the device, recycle the whole device through the appropriate electrical recycling route rather than trying to remove it yourself. This advice applies to any rechargeable device with a built-in battery.
Used vapes can be taken to:
- A retailer offering vape take-back
- A household waste and recycling centre that accepts them
- A designated electrical recycling point
Find your nearest vape recycling point or alternatively, you can also use WRAP’s recycle now webpage to check local options.
Nitrous Oxide Canisters
Never put nitrous oxide canisters in your household rubbish, recycling or public litter bins.
Do not try to puncture, crush or deliberately depressurise a canister yourself. Check with your local authority about the appropriate disposal route, as disposal arrangements can vary. Contact details can be found on our Reporting to duty bodies page.
Balloons and Lanterns
The simplest way to prevent this type of litter is not to release balloons or flying lanterns outdoors.
For events or celebrations, consider alternatives such as:
- reusable flags, streamers or banners
- static or solar-powered lights
- bubbles
- planting a tree or flowers
- a minute of reflection or applause for memorial events
Don't release balloons simply because the event has finished. Deflate balloons fully and dispose of them according to your local waste guidance. The RSPCA recommends deflating balloons and cutting them up before placing them in a bin, so they cannot pose the same risk to animals. For ribbons, strings and other attachments, make sure they are removed and disposed of safely rather than being left loose.
For flying lanterns, do not release them and do not use burning as a disposal method. For unused or unwanted lanterns, check the manufacturer's/local council's disposal guidance because they contain a mixture of materials such as paper and wire/bamboo. If you require more information about disposal in your area, you can find contact details on our Reporting to duty bodies page.
Still unsure what to do with an item?
Use Circular Communities Scotland's Reuse Map or Zero Waste Scotland's reuse tool to find places where unwanted items may be reused rather than thrown away.
Check the waste/bins/recycling pages of your local authority to find out how to dispose of items in each local authority. See links for each local authority on the reporting to duty bodies page.
Ensure you are following SEPA's flytipping guidance to make sure household waste is disposed of legally, safely and doesn’t cause environmental pollution.
Work together
Ultimately, it will have to be a combination of measures that tackle litter and littering behaviours. We need to change attitudes towards littering, ensure our places discourage it and use legislation and enforcement where necessary.
Taking the example of wearing a seatbelt in the car, legislation caused many drivers and passengers to immediately wear their seatbelt. Then, in 1991, it became compulsory for rear-seat occupants to wear one too which lead to an immediate increase from 10% to 40% of seatbelt wearers. During this time, it quickly became socially frowned upon to not wear a seatbelt, enforcement was brought in to fine drivers, and the national campaign highlighted the importance and safety. Today over 90% of people wear their seatbelts making it the norm.
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