Chalfont St Peter: Fly-tipper is fined after West Hyde Lane dump

Mark Mills, 39, of Lovatt Drive in Ruislip, was taken to court after he was caught on camera fly-tipping in Buckinghamshire countryside.

He pleaded guilty to the offence of illegally dumping waste during his appearance at High Wycombe Magistrates Court on Wednesday March 29.

The court heard how a pile of waste comprising of a sofa and sofa parts was found dumped at West Hyde Lane in Chalfont St Peter on June 8 last year.

The sofa was found dumped in the bush on West Hyde Lane (Image: Buckinghamshire Council)

Buckinghamshire Council’s cabinet member for climate change and environment Gareth Williams said: “What is even more galling with this case is the fact that the offender could have recycled this waste free of charge at his local council recycling centre but instead he chose to break the law and dump it illegally in Bucks.”

Since the area is plagued by heavy fly-tipping, the council’s enforcement team carries out regular surveillance there. 

Thanks to the hidden cameras, Mr Mills was caught in action.  

The footage showed him arriving in daytime before he was seen fly-tipping waste into the bushes of a rough lay-by.

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An investigation traced the van back to a removal company in Slough. It had been in the possession of Mr Mills on the date of the offence.

He then attended an interview at the council Aylesbury office, where he reluctantly admitted the dumping offence.

The Magistrates fined Mr Mills £768, ordered him to pay £85 towards the council’s clean-up costs and levied a victim surcharge of £77, making the total to pay £930.

“We carry out regular surveillance, targeting fly-tipping across the county as part of our zero-tolerance approach.

“Our investigations show that around 70 percent of waste dumped in Bucks has been brought in from other areas, as was the case with this incident and tackling this onslaught is a key priority," Mr Williams added. 

Buckinghamshire Council secured £50,000 funding from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) last year to help tackle cross-border fly-tipping in the county.

The money will be spend on measures to help trace and prosecute fly-tippers, including filling in roadside areas prone to fly-tipping and using specialist cameras to record footage of those illegally dumping waste.