Landlord fined after rubbish from renovation work found dumped in Cambs village

A landlord has been fined after rubbish from a property he was renovating was found dumped at the side of the road. The waste was removed from a property in Huntingdon but was left piled up at the said of Long Drove in Cottenham.

The rubbish pile included timber, mattresses, carpets, tiles and other household waste. It was investigated by the Environmental Crimes team and officers from South Cambridgeshire District Council’s Environmental Health team, who found the owner of the rubbish was a landlord who lived in Hunstanton, in Norfolk.

He claimed that a friend had been looking after the property but was unable to provide a contract of employment or proof of liability for the person. He admitted work had been carried out at the property and identified several items in the waste. He admitted to not having carried out the necessary checks on the contractors about how they disposed of waste.

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The landlord was fined £400 and made to pay £1,000 in costs. He was also left with a criminal record.

Councillor Annika Osborne, member for the Cottenham ward, said: “We are really pleased that this action has been taken in our battle to rid our communities of the eyesore of fly-tipping. We hope this court case will act as a deterrent to other to this deeply anti-social criminal behaviour.”

All businesses have a duty of care to ensure that contractors removing waste are checked against the Environment Agency’s register of authorised waste carriers. They are also required to have a Waste Transfer Note completed before the rubbish is removed.

Cllr Henry Batchelor, lead cabinet member for environmental services, said: “This is an excellent example of joined-up working within South Cambridgeshire District Council with Huntingdonshire District Council providing mutual aid and support to bring about a successful result in court. It also highlights the dangers of not taking all reasonable precautions to safeguard waste transfers. Fly-tipping is a blight on the local environment, a danger to public health and a hazard to wildlife. It also undermines legitimate waste businesses.”

Anyone who witnesses someone fly-tipping should call the police on 999 and report that an environmental crime is in progress. Any fly-tipped rubbish you find can be reported to South Cambridgeshire District Council.

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Cambridgeshire Live – Environment