Lincolnshire man Raymond Wortley has been fined more tea £21,000 and ordered to pay £10,000 towards prosecuting costs after being found guilty of operating a waste site without permission at Crowland.
Wortley, 75, of The Streddars, Hundreds Road, Crowland, accepted and stored waste illegally at his home without a permit. Whilst some of the waste was burned, he also left his gate open which allowed flytippers to deposit other waste on his site.
Waste including tree cuttings, plastics, treated wood and construction waste was kept on land at Wortley’s home between 23 October 2019 and 2 June 2021.
Wortley was told orally and in writing on several occasions that he was not allowed to run the site in the way he was doing. Despite this, he continued to do so. Further visits were made to the site in July 2020. An attempt to regularise some of the activities had been made with the green waste now being shredded but this still required a permit.
In November 2021, the site was inspected via drone and found to be still operating as a waste transfer station without any permits.
Wortley was sentenced at Peterborough magistrates’ court on May 24, 2022.
He pleaded guilty to operating a waste facility without a permit contrary to Regulation 12 and 38(1)(a) of the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2016. He also pleaded guilty to knowingly permitting others to deposit waste contrary to section 33(1)(a) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
He was fined £21,693.50 which included the avoided permitting costs and financial benefit Wortley had gained by running the illegal site. He was ordered to pay a contribution to prosecution costs of £10,000 and a victim surcharge of £181.
Peter Stark, enforcement team leader, said: “We take illegal waste activity very seriously and will take the necessary action to disrupt criminal activity and prosecute those responsible. Wortley was advised to stop on numerous occasions but continued to disregard environmental law. He is now receiving the consequences of those actions.”
