Man who dumped rubbish close to home must pay £580

A man found responsible for dumping household waste on land near his home has been ordered to pay £580 by Mansfield magistrates.

The rubbish was fly-tipped by Justin Mather on open land off Swinton Copse, Boughton, on December 29 last year, the court was told.

The waste, which had been bagged up, contained toy packaging and a delivery box bearing Mather’s name.

Photographs were taken by a witness and were produced in court as part of the prosecution case.

The matter was reported to Newark and Sherwood District Council’s waste management in- spection team who invited Mather to attend an interview on two separate occasions.

Mather, of Swinton Copse, failed to attend and did not respond to the allegations put to him.

'A serious offence'

He was prosecuted under section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which sets out a householder’s duty of care to take reasonable measures in transferring household waste to an authorised person or to a person for authorised transport purposes.

Mather, 40, who pleaded guilty to the charge on Thursday, was fined £200, and told to pay costs of £350 and a victim surcharge of £30.

Mr Matt Adey, the council’s assistant business manager — waste management, said: “Fly-tipping is a serious offence that not only results in considerable cost to the public purse to clear but is also harmful to the community and the environment.

“Newark and Sherwood District Council will not tolerate such offences and wherever possible offenders will be prosecuted before the courts.”