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Cotswold Fly Tipper Prosecuted

Cotswold District Council’s efforts to outlaw illegal dumping received a boost recently when a man pleaded guilty to a charge of fly tipping at Cheltenham Magistrates Court.

The man, Mr Ronderson Castro, 35, of Pitman Road, Cheltenham, was fined £150 and was also ordered to pay £150 costs, as well as a victim support surcharge of £15, when he appeared in court on Monday 20 February.  Apparently in July 2011 he had intended to take his rubbish to a local recycling site but his van was too large and he was directed to a site that could handle bigger vehicles.  En route to the other site, he claimed that he got lost so he decided to dump the rubbish in a small lane that leads to Puckham Woods. He confessed that this was the wrong thing do and apologised for his actions.

Commenting on the verdict, Cllr David Fowles, the Cabinet Member for the Environment at Cotswold District Council, said: “Officers at the council tried to interview the man twice under caution but he did not respond to letters.  As a result, we did not hesitate to take out this prosecution. We were equally successful when we prosecuted a fly tipper last September, and this latest court case emphasises that we are willing to take legal action to penalise offenders.”

He continued: “’The vast majority of Cotswolds residents dispose of their waste in a proper manner, and it is encouraging to see a significant drop in fly tipping incidents thanks in large part to the council’s Environmental Warden, who has been working in partnership with local residents to tackle illegal dumping by adopting a ‘zero tolerance’ approach.  Records so far for 2011-12 show a reduction to 234 fly tipping incidents across the district over a ten month period – this compares with a total of 373 during the twelve months of 2010-11 and 499 incidents in 2009-10. However, we won’t be satisfied until fly tipping figures drop to zero  – it is totally unacceptable.”