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Resident fined £600 after waste fly-tipped on farm

Maisie LillywhiteWest of England
News imageWiltshire Council Two side by side images showing different angles of a pile of waste - including broken up wood from a white chest of drawers, an armchair, a swab for the armchair, and a broom - which has been dumped beside a dilapidated corrugated metal barn in the Wiltshire countryside, next to a track. It is a cloudy day.Wiltshire Council
The waste, which had been dumped on farmland, was reported to Wiltshire Council on 30 January

A Trowbridge resident has been fined £600 after their waste was fly-tipped on a farm.

The resident paid £120 to a man who had knocked on their door and offered to remove waste from the side of their house before dumping it on farmland near Cherhill.

A £600 fine was issued to the resident, who cannot be named for legal reasons, after Wiltshire Council's environmental enforcement officers traced the waste back to their property.

Martin Smith, cabinet member for highways, said: "This case is a powerful example of how quickly we can take action when we have clear evidence and when residents fail to meet their duty of care."

The fly-tip was reported on 30 January and was investigated by environmental enforcement officers on the same day.

During an interview, the resident could not provide any further details to help the officers identify the man who took away the waste.

They also admitted that they had not checked whether the man was a licensed waste carrier, recorded their vehicle details, or obtained a receipt for the water collection - also known as a Waste Transfer Note.

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Wiltshire Council has urged residents to take precautions when paying someone to dispose of their waste, including checking the Environment Agency's register of licensed waste carriers.

Smith said fly-tipping was "not a victimless crime".

"It damages our environment, impacts landowners, and places unnecessary costs on the public purse, both in the investigation and potential clean-up costs," he said.

"In this instance, as the fly-tip was located on privately owned farmland, the legal responsibility for arranging and paying for the removal of the waste falls to the landowner.

"While the council cannot use public funds to clear waste from private land, we remain committed to supporting landowners wherever possible through thorough investigation and enforcement."

Wiltshire Council said the fine had been paid in full.

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