Landowner fined £5,000 for disregarding waste transfer rules
© Travelview/Adobe Stock A Barnsley landowner has been fined more than £5,000 after failing to provide the Environment Agency with the paperwork trail required for waste transfers.
The agency says the court case highlights the need for landowners to follow the rules when handling waste.
The agency served a statutory notice on Carla Hardwick of Barnsley Road, Brierley, following an investigation into fly-tipping in a layby at Windmill Hill on the A17 near Sleaford, Lincolnshire.
See also: The rules on accepting inert waste for farm projects
The notice required her to hand over waste transfer notes supporting the transfer of waste from her land in Carlton, Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
Officers first attended the site in October 2020 and gave Ms Hardwick advice on the actions she needed to take, stressing the importance of retaining relevant waste transfer notes for waste that had been removed.
When officers returned to the site in June 2021, they noted that the vast majority of the waste had gone.
However, when asked to provide the waste transfer notes, Ms Hardwick failed to provide any documents in respect of the waste removed.
After 12 months, she did provide a single document but this did not match the waste on her site.
The document also did not provide the information legally required by a transfer note, including identifying the person removing the waste.
No system in place
The court heard that Ms Hardwick had no system for recording waste movements from her site.
She was ordered to pay a fine of £729, costs of £4,579 and a victim surcharge of £72.
Environment officer Paul Salter said: “This case demonstrates the importance of businesses and individuals following the rules when handling waste.
“There was no suggestion that Ms Hardwick had fly-tipped any waste herself, but that she had lost control of the waste leaving her site.
“When waste is illegally disposed of, the waste transfer notes enable us to trace the waste.
“Where the rules aren’t followed, we cannot identify offenders, meaning that they get away with it and are likely to commit further offences.”