Illegal disposals of waste, seven companies, £113,500 in
fines
3 August 2010
EXT01 – D01
Fines totalling £113,500 have been handed out to seven companies
following investigations by the Scottish Environment Protection
Agency (SEPA) into a site in South Lanarkshire.
The site at Bardykes Bing, located between Cambuslang and
Blantyre, is operated by Doonin Plant Limited. They pled guilty
last year to disposing of controlled waste in a manner likely to
cause pollution of the environment or harm to human health.
Today (3 August) the Appeal Court, High Court of Justiciary
raised the fine to £90,000 (reduced from £100,000 to take account
of an early plea) by today (Tuesday 3 August).
The Lord Advocate had appealed the original fine of £8,000
(reduced from £10,000 to take account of the early plea) handed out
in November 2009 on the grounds that the sentence imposed was
unduly lenient.
Tom Inglis, SEPA's Acting Director of Operations, said:
"We are pleased the fine for Doonin Plant Limited has been
increased, on appeal, to an amount which better reflects the
seriousness of this case.
"The company was disposing of a large amount of waste and
showing scant regard for the legislation designed to protect human
health and the environment. In addition to the serious potential
damage to the environment, offences like this take business away
from legitimate companies which ensure waste is treated
appropriately and all appropriate licences are in place.
"Waste offences in Scotland are a problem, and one that SEPA is
determined to tackle through operations such as this. The operation
that brought these seven companies to court is one example of the
kind of work we are doing, as is our work to reduce the number of
fly-tipped tyres in the West of Scotland, which is already showing
good results."
Campbell Gemmell, SEPA's Chief Executive, said:
"SEPA aims to be a firm but fair regulator, working with people
to ensure they understand the regulations that apply to them, and
simplifying the system where we can. The flipside of this "better
regulation" approach is that when prosecutions are necessary, the
fine levels must operate as a real deterrent. I therefore welcome
the decision in this case, and note the comment made by Their
Lordships, that a fine in a case such as this should be large
enough to 'bring the message home' to companies that 'the statutory
provisions designed to protect our environment must be taken
seriously'.
"We will continue, through our close working relationship with
the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and indeed with the
Police and other partners as necessary, to ensure that
environmental crime is dealt with in a robust manner in accordance
with our Enforcement Policy."
Five other companies also pled guilty at Glasgow Sheriff Court,
on various dates, to depositing controlled waste on the site when
no waste management licence was in force:
- C.E.P. Demolitions Limited - fined £7,500 on 29 September
2009.
- JCJ (Demolition and Construction) Limited - fined £2,500 on 15
February 2010.
- George Hunter (Demolishers) Limited - fined £6,000 on 4 March
2010.
- E. Nicholson & Sons (Metals) Limited - fined £2,250 on 16
March 2010.
- St Andrews Demolition & Construction Limited - fined £2,250
on 16 March 2010.
One further company pled guilty to failing to provide SEPA with
waste transfer notes for waste sent to the site:
- Enviroclean (Scotland) Limited - fined £3,000 on 25 November
2009.
Iain Cruickshank, SEPA's Unit Manager in South Lanarkshire,
said:
"Every company dealing with waste is under a duty of care to
regularly review operating practices and check the public register
to ensure they are complying with legislation. The six companies
prosecuted for using Bardykes Bing during our investigation may
have been told the waste could be accepted, but they never actually
checked to make sure a waste management licence was in place. If
anyone wants to check whether a site they plan to use has the
appropriate licences in place they can contact SEPA
."
"Long established companies know that sites with waste
management licences are strict with the types of waste taken on to
site and the procedures involved in segregating the waste. Licensed
sites have unloading bays where different types of waste are held,
ensuring total segregation of the waste."
"The methods adopted at Bardykes Bing were contrary to the good
practice that should be adopted at waste management sites, and any
company that has been involved with the waste industry should be
well aware of their environmental duties and responsibilities."
The investigation began after SEPA became concerned about the
way waste activities were being carried out at Bardykes Bing. The
site had a number of exemptions in place which allowed it to take
in specified waste and carry out specified treatment (ie. chipping
wood or crushing concrete). All waste should either have been
removed from site at a later date for re-use or moved off site once
processed.
As a result of routine inspections carried out in 2006, SEPA
suspended the waste management licence held by Doonin Plant Limited
for the site. Following public complaints it was decided to
undertake a surveillance operation to determine the size of the
operation. On six days during January 2007, 81 deposits of waste
were witnessed being carried out by a number of different
companies. Bulldozers were seen flattening and moving the waste,
and then covering it in soil. Waste was not sorted for treatment or
re-use and mixed wastes were buried in such a way to make it
unusable or very difficult and costly to re-use it in the future.
Once SEPA's investigation was complete, reports on Doonin Plant
Limited and the six companies seen using the site were prepared and
sent to the Procurator Fiscal.
Ends
Notes to editors
The exact charges pled guilty to by each company were as
follows.
Between 16 January 2007 and 30 March 2007, both dates inclusive
at Bardykes Bing, Hamilton Road, Cambuslang, Glasgow, you DOONIN
PLANT LIMITED did dispose of controlled waste, namely paper, wood,
plastic metal, vegetation, polystyrene, insulation material,
chipboard, cardboard, roofing felt, carpeting, a ladder, a bicycle,
a mattress, and a bath in a manner likely to cause pollution of the
environment or harm to human health, namely that they did dispose
of said waste on land that was not lined with an impermeable liner
or supplied with an appropriate leachate collection system or
landfill gas extraction system, resulting in (a) the likely release
of leachate containing high levels of Biochemical Oxygen Demand and
dissolved metals into groundwater and local watercourse; and (b)
the likely release of landfill gas being released into the
atmosphere, causing offensive odour which would impact on the
quality of air; CONTRARY to the Environmental Protection Act 1990,
Section 33(1)(c);
- C.E.P. Demolitions Limited
on 16 January 2007 in or on land at Bardykes Bing, Hamilton
Road, Cambuslang, Glasgow you C.E.P. Demolitions Limited did
deposit controlled waste, namely waste wood, waste wallboard, waste
plasterboard, waste metal, waste treated timber and waste
insulation material, on land without the authority of a waste
management licence, in that you did deposit said wastes on said
land when no waste management licence was in force authorising
same;
CONTRARY TO The Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section
33(1)(a), As Amended.
- JCJ (Demolition and Construction) Limited
between 16 January 2007 and 26 January 2007, both dates
inclusive, in or on land at Bardykes Bing, Hamilton Road,
Cambuslang, Glasgow you JCJ (DEMOLITION & CONSTRUCTION) LIMITED
did deposit controlled waste, namely wood, a carpet, a mop, a chair
and a mattress, on or in said land without the authority of a waste
management licence;
CONTRARY to the Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section
33(1)(a) as amended
- George Hunter (Demolishers) Limited
between 16 January 2007 and 31 January 2007, both dates
inclusive, in or on land at Bardykes Bing, Hamilton Road,
Cambuslang, Glasgow you GEORGE HUNTER (DEMOLISHERS) LIMITED did
deposit controlled waste, namely wood, construction rubble and
soil, on or in said land without the authority of a waste
management licence;
CONTRARY to the Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section
33(1)(a) as amended
- E. Nicholson & Sons (Metals) Limited
between 16 January 2007 and 31 January 2007, both dates
inclusive, in or on land at Bardykes Bing, Hamilton Road,
Cambuslang, Glasgow you E.NICHOLSON & SONS (METALS) LIMITED did
deposit controlled waste, namely wood, rubble, and roofing felt, on
or in said land without the authority of a waste management
licence; CONTRARY to the Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section
33(1)(a) as amended
- St Andrews Demolition & Construction
Limited
between 17 January 2007 and 31 January 2007, both dates
inclusive, in or on land at Bardykes Bing, Hamilton Road,
Cambuslang, Glasgow you ST ANDREWS DEMOLITION & CONSTRUCTION
LIMITED did deposit controlled waste, namely wood, plastic, felt,
rubble and cardboard, on or in said land without the authority of a
waste management licence; CONTRARY to the Environmental Protection
Act 1990, Section 33(1)(a) as amended
- Enviroclean (Scotland) Limited
you ENVIROCLEAN (SCOTLAND) LIMITED having on 14 May 2008 been
served by Scottish Environment Protection Agency with a notice in
writing specifying copy or copies of the transfer note or notes
required in terms of Section 34(5) of the aftermentioned Act and
Regulations 2 and 3 of the aftermentioned Regulations, in relation
to the transfer of controlled waste to Doonin Plant Limited at
Bardykes Bing, Hamilton Road, Cambuslang, for the period 14 May
2006 to 09 May 2008, both dates inclusive, which at that time you
were under a duty to keep in terms of Regulation 3 of the
aftermentioned regulations, and requiring the production of said
documents within 14 days of the service of said notice, did on the
28 May 2008 at 5 Redwood Crescent, Peel Park, East Kilbride, and
elsewhere fail to furnish the Scottish Environment Protection
Agency at its office at 5 Redwood Crescent, Peel Park, East
Kilbride with said documents;
CONTRARY to Environmental Protection (Duty of Care) Regulations,
Regulation 4 and the Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section
34(6).