Our top waste crime stories
Read our top waste crime stories
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Site shut down as Wigan waste investigation continues
A court order is now in place prohibiting anyone from importing waste to the site known as “The Old Cricket Ground” in Bickershaw.
The Restriction Order was granted at Wigan Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 25 February and will last six months.
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Arrests made in multi-million pound waste fraud case
Two individuals in Penzance have been arrested as part of an investigation into waste packaging fraud and money laundering, the Environment Agency has announced today (Wednesday 25 February 2026).
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Councils urged to crush more fly-tippers’ vehicles
New guidance issued today will help local authorities crack down on waste crime, as new statistics reveal there were 1.26 million incidents of fly-tipping last year. For the first time, government guidance will advise local authorities how to seize and crush vehicles used to dump waste.
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M25 waste dump shut
As more drones in the air fight the war on waste on the ground, a suspected illegal dump near the M25 is the latest to be shut by the Environment Agency. In yet more forceful action, concrete blocks now guard the entrance to a field in the quintessentially English village of Stapleford Tawney, in unassuming stockbroker belt Essex.
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Belgravia waste crook forced to pay £1.4m compensation
A prolific waste criminal has been ordered to hand over more than £1.4 million for illegally dumping more than 4,000 tonnes of waste across England. A nationwide investigation by the Environment Agency uncovered a network of 16 illegal dumping sites, stretching from the South East to the North West.
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Enhanced package of cutting-edge technology to combat waste crime
Waste criminals will be detected and stopped before they even get started, thanks to a new package of surveillance and investigative measures announced by the Environment Agency (EA) today (Friday 20 February 2026).
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Northumberland company fined for illegal asbestos waste site
Reddem Ltd, based at Queens Road, Wooler, appeared at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court on Friday 13 February. It pleaded guilty to one offence of operating an illegal waste site and another of keeping or treating waste in a way likely to cause pollution to the environment or harm to human health by storing waste containing asbestos in open containers.
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Serial waste crook forced to pay over £1.4 million for widespread illegal dumping
A prolific waste criminal has been ordered to hand over more than £1.4 million for illegally dumping in excess of 4,275 tonnes of waste across England.
A nationwide investigation by the Environment Agency uncovered a network of 16 illegal dumping sites, stretching from the northeast to the south coast. Farms, a historic manor house and a nature reserve were among the locations trashed.
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Essex arrests in waste crime probe
Now under investigation, 2 men have been arrested in relation to waste dumped in a field near Romford. Essex Police responded to a 999 call about waste left on private land close to the M25’s junction with the M11, in the village of Stapleford Tawney.
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Arrest made & vehicle seized in waste investigation in Merseyside
An arrest has been made and heavy goods vehicle seized during an investigation into suspected illegal waste dumping in Merseyside.
On Monday 2 February, following allegations of illegal dumping, the Environment Agency joined forces with the Joint Unit for Waste Crime (JUWC) and Merseyside Police in the operation at an alleged illegal waste site in Liverpool.
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