A Bristol man has been handed a 12-month Community Order including 80 hours of unpaid work, after South Gloucestershire Council prosecuted him following the discovery of a fly-tip in Hanham during September 2023.
Shane Parker of Bourne Road, Bristol, was found guilty to fly-tipping and other waste related offences at Bristol Magistrates Court on 15 April, as a result of an investigation by South Gloucestershire Council’s environmental enforcement team. Parker will also have to pay £500 in costs and a £114 victim surcharge.
A fly-tip was found at Conham Hill, Hanham, consisting of a large amount of domestic building waste including carpets, tiles, and an old bathroom suite. Among the waste was a Travis Perkins Builders Merchants receipt in the name of a local building firm.
The owner of the business was identified and formally interviewed about the fly-tip under caution. He said the waste had come from a bathroom renovation he was completing on behalf of a client in Kingswood and explained the homeowner had used another local man to remove the waste.
The homeowner stated he was renovating the property at Queen Street and was approached by Shane Parker outside of the property. Parker was driving a drop-side pick-up truck and offered to remove the waste, claiming to be a Licenced Waste Carrier. The pair exchanged phone messages and agreed a fee of £450 for Parker to remove the waste the following day.
Parker provided numerous excuses as to why he could not attend the council offices to be formally interviewed by the council’s environmental enforcement team about the fly-tip. He also failed to respond to a notice to produce a Registered Waste Carrier’s Licence and Waste Transfer Notes covering the period from when the waste was collected, and the fly-tip was found.
Numerous, subsequent attempts to contact Parker were unsuccessful and he was deemed to have no intention of engaging with the investigation.
Robert Evely, Environmental Enforcement team leader at South Gloucestershire Council, said: “It’s good to see justice has been served following our thorough investigation into the fly-tip at Conham Hill, Hanham. Our officers are tenacious when investigating these incidents and we always prosecute fly-tippers where evidence is found.
“We must all take responsibility for disposing of our waste lawfully. If you employ a third party to take away your waste, always ensure you ask for a copy of the company’s waste carrier registration certificate and ask where it is being taken, or you could be found liable and face prosecution.”
Residents and businesses are advised to only give their rubbish to an Environment Agency registered waste carrier.
You can carry out these simple steps to make sure your waste is disposed of legally:
• Ask for a copy of the company’s waste carrier registration certificate and ask where the waste is being taken. Legitimate firms will be happy to provide this information.
• Do not be tempted to use people offering cheap waste clearance on sites such as Facebook and Gumtree unless you have confirmed that they are registered with the Environment Agency
• Check whether the waste carrier is registered by calling the Environment Agency on 08708 506506 or by checking on their website https://environment.data.gov.uk/public-register/view/search-waste-carriers-brokers
• Ask for a registered trading address and contact telephone number for the trader and get a receipt.
Household waste can be taken to the council’s Sort It recycling centres where it can be disposed of at no cost www.southglos.gov.uk/sortitcentres
Residents who see illegal fly-tipping are encouraged to report it by contacting the council’s StreetCare helpdesk on 01454 868000, emailing streetcare@southglos.gov.uk or visiting www.southglos.gov.uk/flytipping
