Quantocks flytipping 'man with a van' is convicted

FLYTIPPERS are being warned they face stiff penalties if they commit environmental crime by dumping rubbish indiscriminately in the countryside.
It follows the conviction of a ‘man with a van’ who dumped waste from a closed village post office in the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
Andrew Austwick, aged 41, of Lyngford Square, Taunton, admitted the flytipping flytipping when he appeared before Taunton Deane Magistrates.
Austwick dumped an assortment of rubbish, including a glass-fronted display fridge, a cash register, and other items at 20 Acre Plantation, near Cothelstone, on August 1 last year.
The Quantock Hills AONB Service alerted Taunton Deane Borough Council to the incident and environmental protection officer Paul Stevens carried out extensive and complex inquiries to identify the culprit.
The trail eventually led Mr Stevens to an address in Taunton which was Austwick’s home.
Austwick was prosecuted by the council and the magistrates ordered him to complete 70 hours of unpaid work for the benefit of the community and to pay prosecution and clear-up costs totalling £500.
The magistrates told Austwick: “Your actions were quite intentional. You were out to make a quick buck. You hit the jackpot in terms of damaging the environment.
“The whole enterprise was motivated by financial gain and you were operating without a licence. Do not do it again.”
Maria Casey, prosecuting on behalf of the council, told the court the waste had been cleared away by the council’s direct labour team at a cost of £280, and prosecution costs were incurred.
Austwick told the magistrates: “It was my own fault. I should have gone by the rules and I did not. I am sorry.”
After the case, the council’s environmental services portfolio holder, Councillor Mel Mullins, said: “It is satisfying to note that the courts have recognised the seriousness of this offence by awarding a very substantial penalty.
“We live in a beautiful part of the country and we want to keep it that way.
“Let anybody who may be thinking of flytipping be in no doubt of the council’s determination to gather evidence and prosecute cases of this environmental crime.”

• Our photograph shows some of the rubbish which Austwick flytipped on the Quantocks. Photo submitted.

Magna wins court injunction against anti-social tenant

ANTI-social behaviour by a housing association tenant in Williton has ended with a court injunction granted to his landlords, Magna West Somerset Housing Association.
The injunction against Paul Stevens, of 30 Northcroft, comes on the back of a catalogue of complaints made by Williton residents to Magna and to local police.
It will remain in place until February 19 next year and carries a power of arrest if Mr Stevens enters certain parts of Williton.
Magna tenant services manager Christine Boland said: “This was another big win for us.
“We take any form of anti-social behaviour extremely seriously, we work closely with the police to tackle these issues.
“Anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated.”
She said in a majority of cases Magna used other tools to resolve problems of anti-social behaviour, including mediation and acceptable behaviour contracts, as well as working closely with the local police.
However, Mrs Boland said: “In this case we had received complaints against Paul Stevens over a number of months concerning noise nuisance, nuisance relating to drug and alcohol abuse, shouting, fighting, and even threats to kill.
“Our residents have a right to live peacefully and securely in their own homes and so we had no other option than to apply for an injunction.”
The injunction means that any assault, threat to assault, intimidation, abuse, nuisance, or annoyance to any person who resides at Egremont Court, Northcroft, or Brook Road, in Williton, would result in Mr Stevens being arrested.