COVERT CCTV cameras costing thousands of pounds have been bought to spy on fly-tippers in Basingstoke and Deane – but they have only just become operational after more than a year on the shelves.

The new state-of-the-art infra-red cameras, bought in July last year at a cost of £12,500, only became operational a few weeks ago – 13 months after they were bought.

Lisa Kirkman, interim head of environmental care at the borough council, said there had been a delay in working out the legal procedures necessary to permit using the cameras.

She said: “It is imperative that the evidence the cameras will provide will be admissible and can be used in possible future prosecutions of offenders.” The cameras will be placed secretly in dumping hotspots, most of which are in the countryside.

Previous cameras used by the council could only run for eight hours, but the new ones can run for 48 hours, which means they can last the entire weekend when most offences are believed to take place.

Crucially, they have a wide-angle lens and will be hidden overlooking hotspots. The images can be viewed remotely on the enforcement officer’s laptop.

Signs will go up warning culprits that cameras could be watching. Filmed evidence will also be used in court.

Councillor Elaine Still, Cabinet member for recycling and climate change, said: “We take fly-tipping extremely seriously and we have purchased this advanced equipment to both deter people from fly-tipping in the first place and to assist us in providing more substantial evidence for court prosecutions.”

As previously reported in The Gazette, reckless fly-tippers are lumping the taxpayers with a bill of more than £200,000 each year. In the first three months of 2010 alone, there were 786 incidents in the borough.

But Cllr Still said the borough has one of the highest prosecution rates in the county and this was thanks to enforcement officer Chris Williams, who was appointed two years ago. Before his appointment, there were no prosecutions.

Cllr Still said: “We are hopeful that this new equipment will help us in achieving more.”