£10,000 high-quality after Lancashire unlawful waste operations uncovered

The Environment Agency has secured convictions towards Cats and Dust Limited, its director Cavin Mears and former director Stephen Bryce for working waste websites with out the required environmental permits. They had been additionally charged with falsifying paperwork linked to hazardous waste disposal 

On Friday 12 September at Preston Crown Court, Cats and Dust Ltd was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £6,000 in prices. Cavin Mears, 45, from Euxton, Chorley obtained a 12-month group order requiring 200 hours of unpaid work and was ordered to pay £5,360 in compensation to the Environment Agency, together with £6,000 in prices. Stephen Bryce,45, from Lancaster was given a 12-month group order requiring 150 hours of unpaid work and was ordered to pay £6,000 in prices.   

The courtroom heard that Mears and Bryce had been beforehand administrators of RF Recycling Ltd, an organization working a regulated facility with no allow. The facility was at Unit 6, Twin Lakes Industrial Estate, Croston, Lancashire, and operated with out an environmental allow between January and June 2020. 

Following a go to from the Environment Agency in October 2021, RF Recycling ceased buying and selling. However, Cats and Dust Ltd commenced buying and selling instantly afterwards, working unlawfully from a separate unit inside the similar buying and selling property till January 2022.  

Cavin Mears, a former director of RF Recycling Ltd, is the only director of Cats and Dust Ltd. Stephen Bryce resigned as a director in September 2021, shortly earlier than Cats and Dust Ltd started buying and selling. 

Sentencing

During sentencing, His Honour Judge Mathieson famous that each males had lengthy expertise within the waste business, together with work with hazardous supplies. He stated they need to subsequently have been totally conscious of their authorized obligations.

He described their conduct as reckless on the outset, however later deliberate and financially motivated, with falsified paperwork used to hide their actions. He added that their disregard for laws demonstrated that they ‘didn’t care about obligations and didn’t care in regards to the affect on folks, property or the atmosphere.’  

Shannon Nicholson, Environmental Crime Team Leader on the Environment Agency stated: 

This case exhibits that those that try and revenue from waste crime will probably be held to account.

Handling hazardous supplies with out the right permits is a critical offence which might put communities and the atmosphere in danger, whereas additionally undercutting respectable companies.

By persevering with operations regardless of warnings and by falsifying paperwork, these defendants demonstrated a blatant disregard for the legislation.

Summary of Charges:  

Cats and Dust Limited  

• Operated a regulated waste facility with out the required environmental allow (Oct 2021 – Jan 2022).  

• Submitted a number of falsified Hazardous Waste Consignment Notes, misrepresenting producers or consignees.  

Cavin Mears  

• As director of RF Recycling Ltd and Cats and Dust Ltd, consented to or uncared for a number of offences, together with working waste amenities with out permits and falsifying consignment notes.  

• Offences spanned Jan 2020 – Jan 2022, involving a whole bunch of false entries in waste documentation.  

Stephen Bryce  

• As director of RF Recycling Ltd, accountable for working an unpermitted waste facility and submitting falsified consignment notes (Jan 2020 – Oct 2021).