Fly-tippers in court as authorities pledge to tackle illegally dumped waste in Dorset

Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP), which is working closely with Dorset Police, says it is looking at new ways to fight the blight of the illegal carrying and dumping of waste – and it is reminding residents to report incidents.

The recently-published National Rural Crime Survey 2018 shows that fly-tipping remains a huge concern for Dorset residents, with 57 per cent of the 20,000 people and businesses surveyed seeing evidence of such activities.

The responsibility for fly-tipping lies with local authorities which also lead on any prosecutions, but a multi-agency approach is the most effective way of combatting this illegal activity.

DWP officers now sit on the multi-agency Police Rural Crime Team, which looks at all kinds of rural crime, while sharing intelligence and best practice.

In May, the DWP Enforcement Team worked alongside Dorset Police as part of the multi-agency enforcement operation ‘Market Place’. This saw vehicles suspected of carrying waste pulled over by Dorset Police and subjected to waste carrier licence checks by the DWP, resulting in Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) being issued to those who were not appropriated licensed.

The DWP also worked with the police on operations around the Great Dorset Steam Fair in August.

Cllr Tony Alford, chairman of the DWP’s Joint Committee, said: “Fly-tipping isn’t just unsightly and anti-social; it is a crime. It makes sense for the DWP to work closely with the police so we can share information and pool our resources to investigate those who break the law by illegally transporting and dumping waste.

"But the National Rural Crime Survey 2018 also shows that rural crime is still massively underreported, so we’d like to remind people to tell us about any fly-tipping wherever you see it. This can be done online, by phone or by e-mail.

We’re delighted to be part of this multi-agency approach and are looking forward to continuing our work with Dorset Police in the future.”

Martyn Underhill, Police and Crime Commissioner for Dorset, added: "The Problem Solving Forum I recently held on fly tipping brought together partners and agencies to discuss this problem and a partnership action plan is now in place to tackle it.

"Waste crime costs the English economy millions of pounds every year and waste criminals undercut genuine businesses who dispose of waste responsibly.

"For too long those who commit the crime of fly tipping have got away with blighting our county, and I pledge to continue to work with our partners, so together we can put a stop this scourge.’’

Offenders in court

DWP Enforcement Officers, aided by the county council’s legal team, have successfully prosecuted three different people for crimes related to fly-tipping and duty of care in recent weeks.

They include Richard Moulding, 24 of Wimborne, who had been advertising waste disposal and gardening services on Facebook in December 2017.

A resident contacted him to remove some waste during a house move. Moulding agreed a price of £30 and removed the waste in a small van but did not provide a Waste Transfer Note (a receipt of what the waste consisted of, who picked it up and where it was going). However, the resident did note the vehicle registration number of the vehicle Moulding was using.Two days later, a fly-tip was reported to the DWP in Colehill. Enforcement officers investigated, found evidence linking the waste to the

resident and subsequently traced Moulding a few weeks later.

After Moulding ignored a requirement from the DWP to attend an interview, Dorset Police officers arrested him. He denied collecting and fly-tipping the waste.

He pleaded guilty at court to Unauthorised Deposit of Controlled Waste (fly-tipping) and an offence of failure to provide information during the investigation (by failing to attend the interview.) He was fined £240 with costs awarded of £500. He was also ordered to pay compensation to the complainant of £30 and a victim surcharge of £30.

In March 2018, Kay Higton, 67, of Ferndown, was contacted by the DWP’s Enforcement Team as bin collection crews suspected large amounts of commercial waste were being produced at her home. While she confirmed that a business was run from her premises, she failed to produce any waste transfer notes from a commercial waste service provider and was subsequently issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) by enforcement officers.

The DWP then received a phone call from Higton who stated she would not pay the fine and would be happy to go to court. Despite a further and final reminder to pay, Higton refused and was taken to court.

Higton pleaded not guilty but following a trial at Poole Magistrates Court on October 11, she was found guilty of failing to produce the waste transfer notes as required. She was fined £600, costs awarded of £600 and paid a victim surcharge of £60.

In May 2018, DWP Enforcement Officers were on duty at the Ashley Heath Weighbridge on the A31. As part of a multi-agency operation, the officers were working with various partner agencies including the Dorset Police. People driving those vehicles carrying waste that were stopped by the police were then checked by DWP officers for appropriate licensing.

Alfred Leslie Wilks, 42 of Ringwood, was driving a Mazda van containing a large quantity of differing types of flooring and packaging that he confirmed was waste from his job as a floor layer. As he did not have a Waste Carriers Licence, he was issued with an FPN which he subsequently failed to pay.

On 4 October, Wilks was found guilty at Poole Magistrates Court in his absence, of having no Waste Carriers Licence. He was fined £400, cost awarded of £842.50 and a victim surcharge of £40.

'Clear message' to waste criminals

Jeremy Gallagher, Enforcement Officer at the Dorset Waste Partnership, said: “The DWP hopes that these successful prosecutions send a clear message to those people who try to dispose of waste illegally. But we also want members of the public, including business owners, to be aware of their duty of care when producing waste and/or handing it to somewhere else.

"If you hand your waste to someone else for disposal, make sure they have a Waste Carriers Licence and get a Waste Transfer Note. If you operate a business, even if it’s based at home, and you produce waste, you need to have a commercial waste collection arranged. We’ve got lots of useful information as part of our anti-flytipping campaign, Tip-Off.

And remember - if the DWP issues you with an FPN and you fail to pay it in time, you could end up in court.”

You can find more information about the DWP’s Tip-Off campaign at www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/tip-off

Business owners can find out more about their duty of care when it comes to waste at www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/recycling-for-business