Our top waste crime stories

The Environment Agency has stopped illegal waste activity in its tracks at a site near Chesterfield. The intervention at the former industrial site at Wingerworth followed reports from the public about illegal waste dumping. Environment Agency officers made enquiries on Thursday 30 April following public reports the previous day of suspicious activity at the derelict site. They found around 100 tonnes of household waste had been deposited or buried on the site.

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The Environment Agency has blocked access to land in Lancashire to prevent the illegal dumping of waste. A court order is now in place prohibiting anyone from importing waste onto the site at Hey Head Farm, Rochdale Road, at Bacup. The Restriction Order was obtained at Lancaster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday 28 April and will last six months until 27 October 2026. Access to the land is also prohibited, subject to certain exceptions. Anyone breaching the order is committing a criminal offence. A criminal investigation into illegal waste activity is ongoing.

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Fly-tippers could lose their driving licence if they are caught blighting streets or the countryside with waste now that powerful legislation is set to come into force giving the courts new powers. The measures are part of the Policing and Crime Act and mean that those who repeatedly break the law and accumulate 12 or more points within a three-year period will be at risk of disqualification from driving altogether, acting as a tough deterrent against dumping waste illegally. In some instances, offenders may get 9 points for a single incident. The move is a central part of the government’s Waste Crime Action Plan, which sets out a wide-ranging crackdown on waste criminals, from those dumping rubbish on high streets and roadsides to operators running large illegal waste sites.

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The Environment Agency has blocked access to land in rural Northumberland following reports of illegal dumping and burning of waste. A court order is now in place prohibiting anyone from importing waste onto the site at Old Swarland and concrete blocks stop vehicles accessing the site. The Restriction Order was obtained at Bedlington Magistrates’ Court on Monday 27 April and will last six months. It follows reports of waste dumping and fires burning on the land over recent months, impacting on the local community. An investigation into this is ongoing.

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The Environment Agency, working with Natural England, has launched an investigation into the large-scale, illegal dumping of waste at the Cave’s Inn Pits Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) near Shawell, Leicestershire. The site is well-concealed but on receiving reports of odours from the public, Environment Agency and Natural England officers visited the site last week. They discovered significant amounts of household waste had been dumped at the site, causing pollution to the SSSI. The site is believed to hold approximately 30,000 tonnes of shredded waste in layers with soil used to cover it. The public are urged to stay away from the site whilst the investigation is ongoing.

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Following a major investigation by the Environment Agency, a gang of four has been sentenced to prison for conspiracy to illegally dump controlled waste across six sites in London. Patrick Doherty received 28 months, and Martin Ward received 18 months. Michael Ward (also known as Martin McCann) and Simon O’Donnell both received 14 months suspended for 2 years. The group carried out a sophisticated and calculated criminal operation that caused devastation to businesses and landowners.

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Waste criminals are running out of places to hide as the government launches its Digital Waste Tracking service to follow every piece of permitted waste across the country in real time. As part of its major crackdown on waste crime under the government’s Waste Crime Action Plan, new laws being laid in parliament will require businesses to create a real-time audit trail for the waste they handle. At the moment, waste consignments are tracked using a largely paper based and outdated system that is overly bureaucratic for legitimate operators and fails to give law enforcement the vital intelligence they need to build cases against waste criminals.

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Devon waste carrier David Gorton has been told to pay £17,527 after he deposited waste at a site near Kingsteignton in Devon which was operating illegally. Newton Abbot Magistrates’ Court heard that Gorton, aged 59, of Denbury Road, Newton Abbot, deposited 1,368 tonnes of soil and stone at the illegal site between 19 July 2018 and 16 May 2019, whilst operating as a registered waste carrier. Following Monday’s hearing Gorton was fined £1,466 and told to pay back the economic benefit he realised by his illegal activity of £12,300 after pleading guilty to the illegal deposit of controlled waste and failing to comply with his duty of care as a waste carrier.

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Clearance is underway on a West Yorkshire illegal waste site following court action by the Environment Agency. Andrew Leadbeater, 57, was ordered to clear the site at Wyke Lane, Wyke, in Bradford by 17 June after pleading guilty to waste offences on Friday 17 April at West Yorkshire Magistrates’ Court. Work had already started on the clearance ahead of the hearing.

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A company and its director have been given a month to clear an illegal waste site or risk further court action. They’ve also been ordered to pay fines and costs of more than £20,000 after an Environment Agency investigation into the operation in South Yorkshire. Concept Investments Limited, of London Road, Sheffield, and its director, Austin Fitzgerald, 65, of the same address, both appeared at South Yorkshire Magistrates’ Court for sentencing on Wednesday 15 April.

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