LAMPETER MAN FINED FOR FLY-TIPPING

A Lampeter man has been ordered to pay a fine and court costs of more than £800 for a fly-tipping offence.

Stuart Roper, aged 43, of Cleifion Cottage, Felinfach, was convicted in absence to an offence under Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 at Carmarthen Magistrates Court.

The court heard that in May last year the council’s environmental enforcement section received a report of fly-tipping on the B4337 Llansawel to Llanybydder road.

Officers attended the scene and found a quantity of building waste including plasterboard, which, due to restrictions on its disposal, is classed as a hazardous substance.

The witness had taken down the vehicle registration number and had seen the name of a local construction company written on the back of the truck’s cabin.

The officers contacted the company based in Llandysul who confirmed that they were in the process of purchasing the truck from Roper and that Roper had use of the vehicle at the time of the offence.

Roper admitted fly-tipping, however he said he had been given permission by the land owner. He also confirmed that he did not have a waste carriers licence.

Roper was fined £250 and ordered to pay £527.42 prosecution costs plus a £25 victim surcharge.

Executive Board Member for Environmental and Public Protection Cllr Jim Jones said: “The council is taking a firm stand against fly-tipping and anyone caught will be prosecuted. Fly-tipping is a blight on our landscape and can have serious consequences including pollution and harm to human health and wildlife.”