A DEVON skip company has been ordered to pay £5,500 in fines and costs for illegally burning waste, in a case brought by the Environment Agency.
Tivvy Skips Ltd runs a small waste transfer station near Tiverton and operates under an environmental permit.
On January 6, 2017 the site was inspected and waste was seen being placed in a dumper truck, before being transferred into a skip and burned.
The condition of the skip and debris found around it indicated the burning of waste was a "routine occurrence". Alan Hutchings, the site manager at Tivvy Skips, blamed the illegal burning on a member of staff who he claimed was doing it without his knowledge.
A court heard the Environment Agency had previously warned the company about burning waste, but it had ignored the warnings.
Richard Tugwell, for the Environment Agency, said: "Burning waste is illegal and poses a serious risk to the environment and human health.
"The motive is nearly always financial as it reduces the amount of waste a company has to legally dispose of.
"Courts take these offences seriously and where we have evidence, we won’t hesitate to prosecute."
Appearing before Exeter magistrates, Tivvy Skips Ltd was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £2,500 costs after being found guilty of breaching Regulation 38 of the Environmental Protection Regulations 2016.
Since the offence, the company has introduced new management procedures and was found to be compliant during a recent inspection.
Alan Quick