"This fine should act as a warning to all other contractors who handle waste. The maximum fine for illegal waste disposal is now £50,000, and with the support of the courts, the Environment Agency is committed to ensuring that environmental crime does not pay."
Mike Robotham, Environment Agency
A Bradford man and Leeds demolition firm were fined on Monday last, a total £17,000 at Dewsbury Magistrates court for waste offences that took place on farmland, according to the Environment Agency.
Demolition Services Limited, of Leeds, was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £3,000 costs to the Environment Agency.
In addition Joseph Romani, Birkenshaw, Bradford, was fined £7,000, and ordered to pay costs of £3,000.
The offences took place on land adjoining Sunnybank Farm, Birkenshaw.
Complaints
The Environment Agency received a number of complaints about smoke coming from land at Sunnybank Farm. Mr Romani owns the farmhouse which adjoins this land.
In July 2004 an Agency officer saw a large plume of smoke from a field to the rear of the farm. There was a fire of several metres in width which was generating dark smoke and a pile of material resembling demolition waste beside the fire.
In December 2004 an Environment Agency officer saw waste on the site. This waste was composed of broken wood, plastics and waste which looked like demolition waste. The officer also saw that excavation waste had been landfilled, and there was a second area which had a mobile crusher and a number of loads of unprocessed brick and concrete demolition materials.
Over the course of the following two months, Environment Agency officers saw further deposits of mixed demolition waste and fires.
On 3rd February 2005, five Environment Agency officers and two Police raided the site, where Romani identified himself.
A pile of waste was observed which was up to 3 metres high, 16 metres long and 8 metres wide. The pile consisted of a wide range of materials including sinks, radiators, timber, metal, carpet and cardboard, amongst others.
There was also a smaller waste pile which looked as though it had been burnt.
Some of the papers found on site could be traced to Demolition Services Ltd and referred to demolition work it had carried out on a job at Sheffield University.
In April 2005 again an officer observed a large pile of waste which was partly burning. A digger appeared to be scraping up from the waste pile and putting it on the fire, and there was smoke. The digger was also seen digging a hole and putting waste into the hole.
Demolition Services Ltd and Mr Romani pleaded guilty on the morning that the trial was due to start.
In mitigation, Mr Romani said he had handled thousands of waste without problem for many years, and was out of the country at the time of these incidents, but accepted responsibility for the activities on the land. He had no previous environmental convictions.
Speaking after the case, Mike Robotham, the environmental crime officer at the Environment Agency, who led the investigation, said:
“The Environment Agency is committed to tackling unscrupulous contractors and protecting the environment. This fine should act as a warning to all other contractors who handle waste.
“The maximum fine for illegal waste disposal is now £50,000, and with the support of the courts, the Environment Agency is committed to ensuring that environmental crime does not pay.”
The offences
Joseph Romani pleaded guilty to the following offences:
1. On dates between 26 July 2004 and 21 April 2005, knowingly permitted controlled waste to be deposited on land, namely Sunnybank Farm, Birkenshaw, when there was not in force a waste management licence authorising the deposit of waste on the land.
Contrary to Section 33(1)(a) and 33(6) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
2. On dates between 26 July 2004 and 21 April 2005, knowingly permitted controlled waste to be treated by burning on land, namely Sunnybank Farm, Birkenshaw, when there was not in force a waste management licence authorising the treatment of waste of the land.
Contrary to Section 33(1)(b) and 33(6) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
3. On dates between 26 July 2004 and 21 April 2005, knowingly permitted controlled waste to be kept on land, namely Sunnybank Farm, Birkenshaw, when there was not in force a waste management licence authorising the keeping of waste on the land.
Contrary to Section 33(1)(b) and 33(6) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
4. On dates between 26 July 2004 and 21 April 2005, knowingly permitted controlled waste to
be disposed of by burial in land, namely Sunnybank Farm, Birkenshaw, when there was not in force a waste management licence authorising the disposal of waste in the land.
Contrary to Section 33(1)(b) and 33(6) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
Demolition Services Limited pleaded guilty to the following:
1. On dates between 18 November 2004 and 4 February 2005 knowingly caused controlled waste to be deposited on land, namely Sunnybank Farm, Birkenshaw, when there was not in force a waste management licence authorising the deposit of waste on the land.
Contrary to Section 33(1)(a) and 33(6) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
[Source - Environment Agency]