A Filton man has been ordered to pay a total of £462 in fines and costs after South Gloucestershire Council prosecuted him for waste offences relating to his convenience store on Filton Avenue.
Omar Mousin, of Filton Avenue, Filton, appeared at Bristol Magistrates Court on Monday 12 May. He pleaded guilty to fly-tipping and was handed a £269 fine, ordered to pay £85 in costs and a £108 victim surcharge, making a total of £462.
The court heard that the Filton Avenue area has been a long-standing hotspot for illegally dumped waste. In December 2023, South Gloucestershire Council installed an overt CCTV camera on a lamp post overlooking the row of shops on Filton Avenue to act as a deterrent to those involved in waste crime, but also to detect those committing offences.
On 24 and 26 December 2023, the CCTV captured a member of staff from Filton International Stores bringing waste from the premises and placing it in the public bin on the street outside of the store.
In response to the footage, the store was visited by environmental enforcement officers on 15 January 2024 and the owner of the premises, Omar Mousin, was provided with a Notice under section 47 of the Environmental Protection Act. The Notice required him to obtain and use appropriate receptacles for waste generated by the business, in line with a commercial contract for the removal of his waste, and to ensure that they were kept clean, rodent proof and emptied regularly. Businesses that produce waste are legally required to arrange for its proper disposal through a commercial waste contract. This is because businesses generate more waste than households, whose waste disposal is covered by Council Tax. If a business uses public litter bins for its waste, it is not only avoiding proper disposal costs but also committing the criminal offence of fly-tipping.
During June 2024, officers from the environmental enforcement team were carrying out business waste checks in the rank of shops on Filton Avenue. The visits involved completing a questionnaire relating to how the business managed its waste, whether it was complying with its duty of care and if it had a commercial waste contract in place. It was found that Filton International Stores still had no commercial waste contract in place despite being issued a Notice to do so in January.
Further CCTV footage again captured what appeared to be staff from the store placing commercial waste in the public bin outside. The council then served a requirement on Filton International Stores, and Mousin as owner, to produce Waste Transfer Notes covering 1 January 2023 to 14 August 2024 and to prove that he had a valid waste contract for the business.
In September, Mousin attended the council’s Yate offices for voluntary interview, where he acknowledged that he was the single owner and proprietor of the business, it was the only premises he owned and he employed two members of staff. When presented with the CCTV images he acknowledged that the incidents on 24 and 26 December 2023 involved one of his staff. He also accepted that he had no commercial waste contract in place at the time and as a result had been provided with a Notice which carried conditions he must meet in order to comply with his duty of care. He stated that in response to that Notice he had been sharing a bin with the kebab shop next door.
Mousin accepted that the management of all waste generated by the business was his responsibility and that the incidents had shown that he had failed in his duty of care. He also failed to produce any waste transfer notes or proof of a valid commercial waste contract for the business as required. He was reported for summons for the offences.
Councillor Sean Rhodes, cabinet member responsible for environmental enforcement at South Gloucestershire Council, said: “Businesses have a legal duty to manage their waste responsibly and we want to send a clear message that we will continue to take enforcement action against those who flout the law.
“In this case, despite being issued a legal Notice and having ample opportunity to comply, the store owner failed to secure a commercial waste contract and continued to dispose of business waste improperly.
“Using public bins for commercial waste is completely unacceptable and places an unfair burden on local taxpayers.
“Prosecutions like these protect our environment and create cleaner and safer places for our communities. These are key priorities of the Liberal Democrat/ Labour partnership.”
Residents and businesses are advised to only give their rubbish to an Environment Agency registered waste carrier.
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
