Newark man given suspended sentence for dumping tonnes of rubbish at Long Bennington illegal waste site
A man has pleaded guilty to operating a waste site illegally just weeks after being sentenced for operating another.
Samual Hussan, 61, of Bevercotes Close, Newark, was the director of Sammy Recycling Ltd which ran the site at Fen Lane in Long Bennington. The business is now dissolved.
Officers first visited the area in August 2018 after complaints. Exemptions were in place at the site to process the waste but were found not to have been fully complied with.
Plastic waste was being blown around the location with no fencing in place to keep it in. Investigators spoke with Hussan about the issues and sent him a letter reinforcing their concerns.
They returned the following month and found some of the waste was no longer being separated properly. This was a further breach of the exemptions that Hussan had for the site.
In February 2019, officers were made aware that Sammy Recycling Ltd had left Fen Lane. Despite this, huge amounts of waste had been left behind with pools of contaminated standing water also present.
Officers calculated that more than 2,000 tonnes of waste had been left. This included over 1,600 tonnes of plastic and plastic shredded waste, 26 tonnes of paper, 45 tonnes of wipes and 510 tonnes of carpet.
In April, officers found some of the waste had been sold but there was evidence of attempts to burn some of the remaining plastic. During the visit safety concerns were also raised; baled waste was falling and splitting open while fencing had fallen leaving the site open for arsonists.
Officers contacted Hussan and Sammy Recycling Ltd again, asking for proof that waste had been transferred, but received no response.
Hussan appeared at Lincoln Magistrates’ Court on May 6 having previously pleaded guilty to some of the charges in January this year.
He pleaded guilty to operating a waste site without an environmental permit contrary to Regulation 38 of the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2016.
Hussan also pleaded guilty to keeping waste in a manner likely to pollute the environment of harm human health arising from the risk of fire.
He further admitted failing to provide waste transfer notes.
Hussan was sentenced to 26 weeks in custody, suspended for two years, and was disqualified from being a director for five years. Hussan was told to pay £2,000 in costs as well as a victim surcharge of £100.
Sammy Recycling was fined £1,000.
At the end of April, Hussan appeared at Nottingham Magistrates' Court charged with operating another illegal waste site on land by Hardy's Farm Shop, Farndon.
He was said to have taken advantage of co-defendant Frederick Hardy, 75 — director of Hardy's Farm Shop — and cost him around £123,000 as a result of the illegal operation.
Hussan sought Hardy's permission to rent some land for a wood waste business he called Sammy Recycling Ltd.
However, the court heard, the business usage was anything but that of recycling as Hussan would burn the waste — and had Hardy sign guarantor forms for financial commitments without his knowledge.
Hussan, who pleaded guilty, was handed a 20-week prison sentence, suspended for two years, and will be on a curfew between 8pm and 6am for 12 weeks from his sentence date.
He was also disqualified from being a company director for five years, and told to pay more than £18,000 in costs.
Hardy — who pleaded guilty to permitting an illegal waste operation — was fined for his involvement, with the total including costs amounting to more than £21,000.