£31,000 of fines handed out to recycling firms for illegal dumping

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Three companies have pleaded guilty of illegal depositing of construction and demolition waste at Doncaster Magistrates Court.

Wykeham Estates (Northern) Ltd were fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £5,500 costs and a £15 victim surcharge. They were also ordered to remove waste from the Hurst Plantation site near Doncaster to a legal disposal facility within eight months.

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Bolland Skip Services Ltd were fined £6,000 and Westmoreland Waste Recycling Ltd were fined £5,250. Both companies were also ordered to pay £5,500 costs and a £15 victim surcharge.

Environment Agency investigations at the Hurst Plantation site, located on Hurst Lane, Doncaster, began in May 2011. Members from the Environment Agency’s Environmental Crime Team visited Hurst Plantation and discovered that around 1,350 tonnes of waste had been unlawfully disposed of at the site.

They also found a dirt track had been turned into a road lying three to four feet above ground level. It was made up of soil, plastic containers, tarmac and waste metal as well as house bricks, breeze blocks and general demolition waste – this was later found to contain asbestos.

During sentencing, District Judge Bennett said that this was a reckless breach of the law by Wykeham Estates with the potential to cause environmental harm. He also noted that Bolland and Westmoreland have been in the waste industry as long time and should have been aware of the legal requirements.

The Environment Agency Officer in charge of the investigation said: “Illegal waste sites and in this case, where asbestos and other harmful contaminants were found in the waste, has the potential to cause serious pollution incidents or harm human health. This prosecution demonstrates that we take waste crime very seriously and will not hesitate to prosecute if necessary, to protect the environment and local communities.”