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Have you heard of the broken windows theory? According to a study carried out by James Q. Wilson and George Kelling in 1982, when a window in a building is broken and is not replaced straight away, the others are quickly broken by other individuals. The theory caused quite a stir in the United States because it explains how minor incivilities can, through a snowball effect, turn a peaceful neighbourhood into a lawless area.

Applied to waste, this theory highlights just how important it is for local authorities to keep public spaces clean, so that residents are not encouraged to dump their waste there indiscriminately.

Fly-tipping, a real headache for local authorities

Fly-tipped waste is defined as "waste abandoned in the environment inappropriately, whether deliberately or through negligence, in areas accessible to the public or on private land with or without the owner's consent." (ADEME, 2019). The definition therefore covers both bulky waste (computers dumped in fields, scooters thrown into the Seine, household appliances left beside landfill sites, and so on) and scattered litter (chewing gum, cigarette butts and plastic bags strewn across pavements).

According to the latest estimates from the Gestes Propres association, around 1 million tonnes of waste are dumped in France every year, the equivalent of 100 Eiffel Towers.

While the health measures linked to Covid-19 curbed the build-up of abandoned waste in certain areas, particularly tourist destinations, they also created a new source of fly-tipped waste, notably the proliferation of discarded face masks.

This fly-tipped waste has multiple, direct impacts on the quality of life of French people (degraded landscapes and living environments, a source of nuisance for neighbourhoods), as well as on the public environment (contamination of soil, air, watercourses, groundwater, seas and oceans by toxic substances), public health (more breeding grounds for larvae that spread epidemics, contamination of the food chain by various pollutants, and so on) and even local authority budgets (collecting fly-tipped waste is far more expensive for public cleaning services, and its scattered, soiled nature makes sorting and recycling more complex).

So what can be done about these incivilities? According to a survey conducted by Ifop in 2021 for Gestes Propres, 27% of French people admit to having dropped litter on the ground. Respondents favoured three solutions: penalties for those who drop litter (54% of French people in favour), educational measures (23%) and improved collection arrangements (25%).

The AGEC law, a legislative step forward in tackling fly-tipping more effectively

The French government has made the fight against fly-tipping one of its priorities and, in line with measure 27 of the circular economy roadmap listing prevention and enforcement tools, a reference guide has been made available to local authorities and to the officers who tackle fly-tipping day in, day out.

The anti-waste law for a circular economy (AGEC) of 10 February 2020 has also delivered significant progress along three main lines.

• The creation of an extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme for construction waste: in force from 1 January 2022, this measure will address the root causes of illegal waste management by creating an effective network of take-back points and free take-back for sorted waste.
• A funding mechanism for clearing fly-tipped waste: with, on one side, the EPR schemes concerned covering part of the costs and, on the other, administrative fines paid by fly-tippers and collected by local authorities.
• Stronger monitoring and enforcement systems: the law makes fines for fly-tipping more of a deterrent and makes life easier for elected officials through a range of measures (access to the vehicle registration system and use of CCTV, pooling of human and financial resources at the level of local authority groupings, authorisation of new categories of officers including public highway wardens, and so on).

4 levers to help local authorities tackle the challenges of fly-tipping

Alongside these legislative advances, local authorities have a range of options for stepping up the fight against fly-tipping. These levers include: rolling out practical, effective collection arrangements, awareness campaigns on the impacts of fly-tipping, the use of nudges to trigger the right behaviours, calls for citizen-led projects and the introduction of financial incentives.

Roll out practical, effective collection arrangements

The point here is for local authorities to adapt collection arrangements to their location across the area. In natural areas or near the coast, it is better to use concrete bins with lids or containers, as illustrated by the initiative led by Citeo in Marseille. Bins without side protection or lids make it easier for waste to spill out. What is more, in line with the broken windows theory set out above, establishing regular collection schedules is essential to prevent bins from overflowing, which in turn encourages fly-tipping. To support local authorities in this, digital systems are available to monitor fill levels at collection points and prevent them from overflowing.

Raise awareness of the impacts of fly-tipping

Telling citizens what happens to waste, what a piece of litter dropped in the countryside costs per inhabitant, or what its concrete environmental impact is, is an effective way of encouraging the right behaviours. A humorous tone works best, as highlighted by a Swiss study showing that posters with humorous content reduced littering by 60%, compared with 25% for a poster with an authoritarian message. This is the approach chosen by the Gestes Propres association, in partnership with the AMF, to raise awareness of the impacts of marine litter and waste abandoned in the countryside.

Use nudges to trigger the right behaviour

The nudge is a concept from the behavioural sciences: a gentle prompt aimed at an individual to encourage an expected behaviour. Applied to waste, it means putting in place innovative, visible collection arrangements that help trigger the right behaviours among citizens. This was done in Lille through the use of "hopscotch" stencils guiding users to the bin, and in Biarritz, where the Re6clope association introduced a cigarette butt collection system based on a voting mechanism.

Introduce financial incentives

Aimed primarily at businesses, financial incentives are also a good way for local authorities to encourage those in their area to reduce waste-related incivilities. Among them, making household waste recycling centres free or almost free for professionals is an initiative that has proved its worth in the municipality of Rosny-sur-Seine. Local businesses can drop their waste at the recycling centre and prices vary depending on whether or not they sort it. For example, an unsorted tonne is charged at €115, while a sorted tonne of concrete rubble is charged at €5.

It is clear, then, that local authorities have plenty of tools at their disposal to curb the spread of fly-tipping. Beyond the 4 levers listed here, a range of local initiatives exist to prevent incivilities and encourage responsible behaviour among citizens.