Curig
Jones - 29-Apr-2008 - At Cardiff Magistrates’
Court on 22 April, Martin Tipples of Ty
Rhiw Farm, Beechwood Road, Taffs Well pleaded
guilty to permitting waste to be deposited
on his land, which was not licensed to accept
it, and was not exempt. He also pleaded
guilty to neglecting his duty of care and
for failing to comply with a notice to remove
the waste, as requested by Environment Agency
Wales, who brought the prosecution. He was
ordered to pay over £5,500 in fines
and costs.
The waste included soil
rubble, wood, metal, plastic and corrugated
roofing material, on his land without a
waste management licence or exemption.
Environment Agency Wales
had received numbers of complaints about
lorry loads of waste going into the site.
Agency officers investigated. The officers
were told that material on site had been
taken there to improve drainage and to extend
an area for exercising horses. However the
officers found that this material was highly
contaminated and not fit for the purpose.
It contained a lot of material likely to
cause contamination of the land beneath.
The notice for removal
of the waste is still in place and the Environment
Agency still require that it be removed
off site.
In a related case, dealt
with in the same court on 25 March, Martin
Walsh of Moorland Road, Splott, Cardiff
pleaded guilty to transporting and depositing
waste on Tipples land. He was ordered to
pay £2,719 in fines and costs.
Susana Fernandez, Environment
Officer, Environment Agency Wales, speaking
after the cases said: “These cases show
that we will not tolerate the illegal handling
of waste and that those who commit waste
crimes such as this will face the consequences.
Anyone who wishes to be a waste contractor
must register with us and be fully licensed,
so that we can ensure that their activities
do not harm the environment.”
+ More
Waste company prosecuted
for illegal dumping
Paul Gainey - 29-Apr-2008
- A Barnstaple-based waste company was today
ordered to pay £29,000 in fines and
costs after illegally dumping waste on land
at two sites in Devon. The case was brought
by the Environment Agency.
Agency officers visited
a site at Cannington Mill, Mill Hill, Witheridge,
Devon in September 2005 and found wastes
deposited in the floodplain of the River
Dalch. Some of this waste included fines
waste that contained small pieces of plastics,
wood and foam mixed with soil. Samples were
taken that indicated this waste should have
been disposed of at a lined household type
landfill.
Once this site was closed
the investigation revealed that the waste
was then sent to another unsuitable site
at Orchard Farm Landfill, Holmacott, North
Devon. This landfill site is only able to
accept inert wastes such as soil and stone.
The origin of the waste from both sites
was traced back to a waste transfer station
operated by Oxy Limited.
The company, based in
Barnstaple, Devon, hold a licence for treating
of waste at the Hacche Lane Waste Transfer
Station in South Molton. The site accepts
mixed household, commercial and industrial
wastes, generally from skips collected in
the North Devon Area. Recyclable items such
as large rocks, metal and wood are initially
separated and the remaining ‘light’ waste
is passed through a shredding and screening
process.
The smallest pieces
of waste that are left after this process
are known as ‘fines’. It is these fines
that were sent to Cannington Mill and Orchard
Farm inert landfill. Separate enforcement
action has been taken against the operators
of both of these sites.
When questioned Oxy
Limited said the ‘fines’ consisted of soil,
sand and dirt from non hazardous skip waste
but there had been no analysis of the content.
Waste transfer notes showed 2,091 tones
had been taken to Cannington Mill and 234
tonnes to Orchard Farm Landfill.
‘Oxy Limited have made
considerable savings by sending this waste
to these inert and exempt sites. It should
have been disposed of at a fully contained
landfill site,’ said Richard Cloke of the
Environmental Crime Team. ‘This case highlights
the need for companies and individuals involved
in waste disposal to ensure they fully understand
the nature of the waste they are dealing
with and that it ends up at a suitable end
site for disposal.’
Oxy Limited, of
Grenville House, Boutport Street, Barnstaple,
Devon, was today fined £14,000 and
ordered to pay £15,873 costs at Exeter
Crown Court after pleading guilty to two
offences of depositing waste at Cannington
Mill and Orchard Farm landfill contrary
to Section 33 (1) of the Environmental Protection
Act 11000.
