An Angus fighting fund has been set up for the battle against litter louts.
The Community Clean-Up and Fly Tipping Prevention Fund will make £5,000 available annually to help individuals or groups with their local efforts.
Grants of £50 to £500 will be given to buy equipment for litter picking, or put in measures aimed at preventing the scourge of fly-tipping at district hotspots.
Angus Council set up the find as part of its annual budget and hope it will also be tapped into to deal with anti-social behaviour such as vandalism and graffiti.
Communities convener, Councillor Mark Salmond said: “There are people – individuals and groups, children and adults – who help us as a council and as a community in fair weather and foul through their determined efforts to tackle the scourge of litter.
“That pride they have in Angus and the places where they live is fantastic and we want to be able to give more than just praise in support of their efforts.
We hope that this annual fund will help to do this.
“The sums may be modest in some respects, but we are confident they will help to make a significant difference,” said the Montrose Independent.
“People will know what they need to tackle issues in their neighbourhood.”
The authority says the fund could also finance measures to combat fly-tipping.
Fund could finance boulders or bollards to block fly-tippers
Communities vice-convener, Councillor Tommy Stewart said: “Our preference would be to try and prevent fly-tipping from happening in the first place over counting the cost of clearing it up.
“The new fund adds strength to that approach.
“For example, funds could go towards the purchase of camera equipment, fencing, placing of bollards or boulders – all valuable deterrents, particularly in warding off fly tippers from private land.”
The Montrose Independent added: “I’d also remind householders that if they are having unwanted items removed from their home, they should check the firm they intend to use is a licensed waster carrier, or consider using the council’s Special Uplifts Service.
“If they don’t and their property is fly tipped, they are complicit in this criminal behaviour.”
The Angus/Dundee border is a regular fly-tipping troublespot and councils on both sides of it have previously come under fire over a lack of action against offender.
In the two years to the end of 2019 only 50 fixed penalty notices were issues, without a single prosecution through the courts.