02 OCTOBER, 2020 BY MARK SMULIAN

EA catches fly-tipper using ‘traceable waste’

A Northamptonshire woman must pay a total of £2,230 after being caught by a traceable item of waste by the Environment Agency’s (EA) Operation Angola.

Kathleen Stokes, previously of Dun Roamin Park, Brackley, pleaded guilty at Highbury Corner magistrates’ court to knowingly causing the dumping of waste on Stonehill Business Park, Edmonton. She had had no permit or exemption in place allowing this.

The EA prosecuted as part of Operation Angola, which target gangs of criminals who dump significant amounts of waste across the south east. 

Investigations in the Edmonton area revealed Stokes as the owner of a tipper truck used in illegal waste activity.

An EA officer called at an illegal encampment in Edmonton last March where there were several caravans and associated vehicles alongside a large amount of deposited waste.

A grey tipper truck was seen driving past, filled with wood waste (pictured). It was later seen at a nearby retail park, where a piece of traceable waste was added to its load by the officer, including a handwritten note stating the date and location.

One month later the officer found further waste on the now vacant Edmonton encampment site including the traceable item of waste that encased her handwritten note. 

Stokes was fined £200, and ordered to pay costs of £2,000 and a victim surcharge of £30.

Stephen Sweetlove, EA area enforcement manager, said: “Where a vehicle is used to unlawfully deposit waste, the person in control of the vehicle, or in a position to control it, is deemed criminally liable for the deposit of the waste.

“Through the persistent intervention of our officers, the Environment Agency has seen a reduction in the number of offences linked to Operation Angola.”