Carmarthen man's scrap metal offence
A Carmarthen man has been given an eight month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £80 towards court costs for illegally carrying scrap metal.
Christopher Ross Thomas, aged 19, of Gwyfre Gardens, Abergwili, pleaded guilty to an offence contrary to section 34(6)of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 at Carmarthen Magistrates Court.
The prosecution was brought by Carmarthenshire County Council.
The court heard that Thomas was stopped by police on Friday, October 7 last year at Dolgwili Road, Glangwili, in a white Iveco tipper lorry which was carrying a consignment of scrap metals.
Thomas produced a valid certificate of registration from the Environment Agency to show he was registered as a waste carrier. However, when asked to provide waste transfer notes in respect of the consignment of scrap metals on his lorry, he was unable to do so.
He was told he would be reported to the council’s environmental enforcement section for the offence.
The court said the level of punishment received was determined by Thomas’s limited means.
It is now hoped this case will act as a warning to others and help prevent the illegal transport of waste which often results in fly-tipping.
The council is working closely with the police, through the Community Safety Partnership, as part of a joint operation targeting scrap metal dealers in Carmarthenshire.
Chair of the Environment Scrutiny Committee Cllr Jim Jones said: “All businesses that carry waste, including scrap merchants, skip companies, builders and gardeners, must have a waste carriers licence. They must also make sure they have the correct paperwork for all the waste they carry and only use licensed waste sites to dispose of their rubbish.
“Hopefully this fine will help to get the message across that anyone caught illegally transporting waste will be prosecuted.”
Christopher Ross Thomas, aged 19, of Gwyfre Gardens, Abergwili, pleaded guilty to an offence contrary to section 34(6)of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 at Carmarthen Magistrates Court.
The prosecution was brought by Carmarthenshire County Council.
The court heard that Thomas was stopped by police on Friday, October 7 last year at Dolgwili Road, Glangwili, in a white Iveco tipper lorry which was carrying a consignment of scrap metals.
Thomas produced a valid certificate of registration from the Environment Agency to show he was registered as a waste carrier. However, when asked to provide waste transfer notes in respect of the consignment of scrap metals on his lorry, he was unable to do so.
He was told he would be reported to the council’s environmental enforcement section for the offence.
The court said the level of punishment received was determined by Thomas’s limited means.
It is now hoped this case will act as a warning to others and help prevent the illegal transport of waste which often results in fly-tipping.
The council is working closely with the police, through the Community Safety Partnership, as part of a joint operation targeting scrap metal dealers in Carmarthenshire.
Chair of the Environment Scrutiny Committee Cllr Jim Jones said: “All businesses that carry waste, including scrap merchants, skip companies, builders and gardeners, must have a waste carriers licence. They must also make sure they have the correct paperwork for all the waste they carry and only use licensed waste sites to dispose of their rubbish.
“Hopefully this fine will help to get the message across that anyone caught illegally transporting waste will be prosecuted.”
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