Wiltshire man fined £1,200 after MOD helicopter caught him fly-tipping

Corey Ross Carr, of Somerset Crescent, Melksham, has been successfully prosecuted for environmental and trading standards offences whilst operating a waste clearance service on Facebook selling sites across Wiltshire.

Carr appeared at Swindon Magistrates' Court on Monday, June 6 and pleaded guilty to four environmental offences and one Trading Standards offence.

The helicopter images

The offences were:

• December 4, 2020: failing in his duty of care for waste found to have been fly-tipped on land at Bishops Cannings, Devizes (off the A4 between Devizes and Beckhampton).
• November 17, 2021: depositing controlled waste on land off Woodrow Road, Melksham.
• November 17, 2021: disposing of waste in a way likely to cause pollution to the environment or harm to human health by burning a mattress and other waste.
• Operating an unregulated waste facility on land off Woodrow Road, Melksham.
• Between November 19, 2021 and January 14, 2022: falsely advertising in Dentons directory and on social media that his business CC Waste Removal & Clearance was “fully audited by the Environment Agency”.

Video footage taken on November 17, 2021, by a passing MOD helicopter was shown in court. It captured Carr depositing and burning waste, including a mattress, on land near Woodrow Road, Melksham. The land is owned by the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust and was not a permitted waste facility.

The court also heard how a large quantity of household waste found fly-tipped on land off the A4 between Devizes and Beckhampton. This waste was traced by Environmental Enforcement Officers to a house in Melksham. They were able to prove Mr Carr had been paid to clear the waste but had failed to lawfully dispose of it.

Carr was given a 12-month Community Order and fined a total of £1,295, including costs. He was also ordered to attend 12 mental health sessions and 10 rehabilitation sessions.

Councillor Dr Mark McClelland, cabinet member for waste, said: "Fly-tipping is recognised as a national issue, and in Wiltshire we take it very seriously.

“We have a very clear message: we will not tolerate fly-tipping and will continue to prosecute anyone who believes that they can flout the rules and blight our communities and environment.

“We would like to thank the MOD helicopter pilots, the Environment Agency, Wiltshire Police and all the witnesses who assisted in this prosecution.

“We will now make urgent representations to the Environment Agency to request they revoke Mr Carr waste carriers’ licence.”