A man has been given two months to clear waste from an illegal site in North Yorkshire following an investigation by the Environment Agency.
Oliver Henry Alexander King, 52, of Bedale, North Yorkshire, appeared at York Magistrates' Court on Friday 24 January 2025, where he pleaded guilty to one charge of operating a waste site without an environmental permit, and one charge of failing to comply with a notice to clear waste from the site.
He was sentenced to a 12 month community order with 110 hours of unpaid work, ordered to pay costs of £5,422.75 and a victim surcharge of £114.
He was also ordered to clear the site of waste by 21 March, 2025. This regulation 44 order requires King to remove all waste from the site and take it to a permitted site for disposal. If he fails to comply he could be subject to further action.
Waste crime puts 'environment at risk'
Ian Foster, Environment Agency Area Environment Manager, said:
Environmental permits are in place to protect the public and environment and the way the waste was stored at this site posed a risk of contamination and fire.
King was given a number of opportunities to clear the site of waste but failed to comply with the instructions from our officers.
Illegal activity such as this undermines legitimate businesses that work hard to operate within the regulations, as well as putting the environment at risk and impacting on the local community.
The court heard that King rented land next to allotments at Oran Lane in Catterick.
On 22 June 2023, Environment Agency officers attended the site following reports of an illegal waste operation.
They saw a significant amount of waste piled up including wood, plastics, metal, and construction and demolition waste, as well as household waste like fridges and freezers.
The waste, which was close to a local watercourse, posed a risk of groundwater and surface water pollution and was stored in one big pile, posing a fire risk.
An Environment Agency letter was sent to King with actions including to stop bringing waste on to the site and to start clearing the waste that was already present immediately. He was given until 21 August, 2023 to comply.
Image shows illegal waste stored at the site in Catterick.
