Builders fined over £3,000 for dumped soil
Two builders have been fined over £3,000 for fly tipping soil.
Nathan Jack Willment aged 24 of Bank Street, High Wycombe and Steven Paul Carey aged 24 of Home Meadow, Farnham Royal were convicted at Wycombe Magistrates Court on Wednesday 10th August 2016 and Wednesday 24th August 2016 for fly tipping.
Both men had pleaded guilty at separate hearings.
The court heard that on Saturday 6th February 2016 the two men were seen fly tipping soil from Mr Willment’s van in Allerds Road, Farnham Royal.
A person in an adjacent field had spotted the van manoeuvring in a suspicious way after it backed into a driveway of an unoccupied dwelling. The witness photographed the van with its registration number and then reported the incident to the local authority.
Waste Partnership for Buckinghamshire investigators interviewed Mr Willment and Mr Carey at a police station where both men fully admitted the offence. They stated that the soil waste had been generated as part of a patio job in the local area. They claimed that they had gone to the Burnham Household Recycling Centre but had been refused entry as it was about to close. They decided to dump the soil in Allerds Road and thought it would be okay as it was soil.
The Magistrates fined Mr Willment £1,625 and Mr Carey £425. The men were ordered to pay £515 each towards prosecution costs, plus £163 and £43 respectively in victim surcharges.
Cllr Mike Smith, Chairman of the Joint Waste Partnership for Buckinghamshire, said: ‘This is a great example of the part members of the community play in bringing fly tippers to book – it’s also a firm reminder that illegally dumped soil or plant material will not be tolerated by the courts any more than any other kind of waste.‘
The ‘Illegal Dumping Costs’ campaign was launched by The Waste Partnership for Buckinghamshire in October 2003 to combat illegal dumping and waste management offences in Buckinghamshire. Since then, the Partnership has secured more than 530 convictions against individuals and companies for illegal dumping and related offences. On average, there is at least one conviction per week for illegal dumping offences in Buckinghamshire. This has resulted in a halving of reported incidents and a saving of over £1 million for residents.
To report fly tipping visit www.buckscc.gov.uk/fly where details of the incident can be uploaded including location and photos.
