People in Kent have described new charges for tips as 'mind-numbingly dumb'.

In a move which has infuriated residents, the county council started charging £4 for each black plastic bag of soil, rubble or hardcore, to a maximum of five a day, and £6 a sheet of plasterboard at its 18 tips, including Sheerness and Sittingbourne, from Monday.

It already charged £2.50 a tyre.

But Medway residents are not subject to similar fees.

Cllr Brian Spoor, from the newly established Sheerness Town Council, said: "This must be one of Kent County Council's craziest decisions yet. It is mind-numbingly dumb and guaranteed to lead to even more fly-tipping.

"It is already difficult enough to use a tip with a van and the council refuses to allow people to walk in with their waste. They say it is for safety but some people don't have a car to drop stuff off."

KCC cabinet member for waste Cllr Mike Whiting, who lives in Bobbing and was recently re-elected to Swale council to serve Teynham, signed off the new charges.

He insisted: "I do not believe the new policy will turn law-abiding citizens into criminals."

The council has set aside £250,000 to crackdown on fly-tipping.

The money will go to the Kent Environmental Crime Waste Practitioners Group comprising of Kent Police, Environment Agency, National Farmers’ Union, Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and district and borough councils.

Cllr Whiting said: "This will take enforcement and detection to a new level. More than 90% of fly-tipped waste could have been disposed of free at a Household Waste Recycling Centre or from a kerbside collection.

“The modest charges being made for a limited range of waste types will help keep our sites open."

The decision was made on January 17 with nine votes in favour, one against and five abstensions.

KCC spends £10 million recycling 185,000 tonnes of waste a year. KCC Leader Cllr Paul Carter has announced a new household waste site for the Tonbridge and Malling area and said he had negotiated permission for Kent residents to use Medway sites.

He said: "We will open and fund an additional Household Waste Recycling Centre in Allington within the next 12-15 months which will service the Tonbridge and Malling and surrounding area taking the pressure off Medway Council’s facility at Cuxton.

“I am also pleased to report that negotiations with Medway Council were satisfactorily concluded so that the reciprocal arrangements enabling Kent residents on the border of Medway being able to utilise their HWRCs, and similarly Medway residents accessing Kent’s facilities, will continue unchanged."

Reaction to the changes on social media

Bill Fowler said: "This is one of the most illogical decisions I have heard for a long time. With fly-tipping at an all-time high, this will only serve to make the situation worse."

Meanwhile, Roger Newbury wrote: "Bonkers, the lot of them. This will encourage more fly-tipping."

Another tip user, Andy Brown, said it is "complete nonsense" while Joe Martin described it as "absolutely stupid."

Colin Morris agreed, saying it is: "Utterly bonkers."

Sudi Driver added: "What an idiotic idea. Anyone with half a brain can work out it will just make people stop using the tip."

Her comment was echoed by Jackie Constable who said: "Surely anyone with half a brain would realise the environmental implications of this ridiculous decision. Scandalous."

And Carol Davies said the idea was "short sighted" and said:"They will have to rebrand Kent as the Rubbish Dump rather than the Garden of England."

* What do you think of the new tip charges? Email: jnurden@thekmgroup.co.uk

See and hear the full KCC debate here.

Read more stories from Kent here.