Scooter seized and fines issued during multi-agency crackdown in Grimsby

North East Lincolnshire Council Environmental Enforcement officers fined 15 people for waste offences during a multi-agency operation in Grimsby on Tuesday (26 July).

The action was taken as part of an operation involving North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC) Environmental Enforcement and licensing officers, Humberside Police and Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) in Scartho Road, Grimsby.

During the operation, Environmental Enforcement officers opened 32 cases (including 15 fines) relating to waste carrier offences and for drivers failing to produce waste transfer notes.

Drivers must produce the correct waste carrier paperwork within 14 days or face fines of up to £300. 

Section 75 (4) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 determines controlled waste to mean household, industrial and commercial waste or any such waste.

Humberside Police stopped and seized a scooter because the rider was on the pavement and did not have an up-to-date license.

Officers from the DVSA issued 10 roadside prohibitions and police officers issued about 15 tickets for offences including a van driver on a mobile phone, defective lights and tyres, insecure loads and an overloaded vehicle.

Cllr Ron Shepherd, portfolio holder for Safer and Stronger Communities, said:

“By working together with other agencies, we can clamp down on a wider range of offences.

“The public tell us they want to see more robust enforcement and the results from the day’s activities show we’re committed to cracking down on those who flout the rules.

“I’m grateful to all the officers from the Council, Humberside Police and the DVSA for taking part today and sending a clear message that we will continue to pool our resources and enforce against those waste crimes and other offences.”

He added:

“One of the drivers behind the day’s action is to deter fly-tippers. Unlicensed waste carriers are known to advertise their services on social media, offering to take away quantities of waste for a fee.

“Once they’ve been paid, some fly-tip the waste instead of correctly disposing of it. This often results in significant damage on the environment and can cost huge sums of tax payer money to collect and dispose of responsibly.”

As part of the operation, Humberside Police identified vehicles and escorted them to a Designated Inspection Area off Scartho Road. The DVSA inspected vehicles for risk of non-compliance with roadworthiness standards and mechanical defects.

This operation follows on from similar operations in October 2021 and April 2022 and is part of the ongoing work that the NELC Environmental Enforcement team does to tackle unlawful waste carriers.

Waste carrier legislation

The current carriers, brokers and dealers (“CBD”) regime requires any person or business that transports waste, buys and sells waste, or arranges the transportation of waste in England to be registered with the Environment Agency as a waste carrier, broker or dealer.

A waste carrier is someone who transports controlled waste (waste that is subject to legislative control in either its handling or disposal) as part of their business.

If a carrier is registered with the relevant agency in England, Wales or Scotland, they can carry waste across the borders of these three nations.

There are two tiers for registration. Individuals or businesses that only carry waste produced in the course of their business activities (other than construction or demolition waste) can register as lower tier. If a person or organisation carries others’ waste, carries construction or demolition waste, or acts as a broker or dealer, their activities are classed as upper tier. 

It has been estimated the cost of waste crime to the UK economy is £1.11 billion per year and the cost to the English economy alone was recently estimated to be in the region of £924 million.

The main economic costs are lost business revenues to the legitimate waste sector, loss of Landfill Tax through misclassification of waste and costs to the public sector of clearing abandoned waste sites and fly-tipped waste.

A recent Independent Review into Serious and Organised Crime in the Waste Sector highlighted “the extent to which waste is handled by an increasing number of, often opaque, intermediaries”.