Woman fined for cigarette litter
A woman has been fined £100 and ordered to pay court costs of £75 after throwing a cigarette end out of a car window in the McDonalds car park in Carmarthen.
Rachel Louise Picton, aged 24, from Park Street, Pembroke Dock, has pleaded guilty by post to an offence contrary to Section 87 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 at Ammanford Magistrates Court.
The prosecution was brought by Carmarthenshire County Council.
She was caught by the council’s environmental enforcement officers back in November and was issued with a fixed penalty notice of £75. However, she failed to pay it within the specified time and was prosecuted through the courts as a result.
Magistrates said the level of the fine and costs were due to her financial position.
The council now hopes this case will act as a warning to others that those caught throwing litter will be prosecuted.
Director of Technical Services Richard Workman said: “There is no excuse for littering our streets. We want to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but they are. It makes an area look unsightly and is difficult and very expensive to clean up as the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement which makes them almost impossible to remove by normal cleaning.”
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire with 83 per cent of litter found on the county’s streets smoking-related.
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Philip Hughes said: “Hopefully this fine will help to raise awareness of this type of litter. We do not want to fine people but we will not hesitate to do so if they continue to litter in this way. The council is determined to clean up the county and punish those that break the law.”
Rachel Louise Picton, aged 24, from Park Street, Pembroke Dock, has pleaded guilty by post to an offence contrary to Section 87 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 at Ammanford Magistrates Court.
The prosecution was brought by Carmarthenshire County Council.
She was caught by the council’s environmental enforcement officers back in November and was issued with a fixed penalty notice of £75. However, she failed to pay it within the specified time and was prosecuted through the courts as a result.
Magistrates said the level of the fine and costs were due to her financial position.
The council now hopes this case will act as a warning to others that those caught throwing litter will be prosecuted.
Director of Technical Services Richard Workman said: “There is no excuse for littering our streets. We want to raise awareness of this type of litter and encourage people to behave responsibly.
“Many people do not think of cigarette ends as litter, but they are. It makes an area look unsightly and is difficult and very expensive to clean up as the ends fall into grates and cracks in the pavement which makes them almost impossible to remove by normal cleaning.”
Research shows that discarded cigarette ends make up the largest proportion of litter in Carmarthenshire with 83 per cent of litter found on the county’s streets smoking-related.
Executive board member for the environment Councillor Philip Hughes said: “Hopefully this fine will help to raise awareness of this type of litter. We do not want to fine people but we will not hesitate to do so if they continue to litter in this way. The council is determined to clean up the county and punish those that break the law.”
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