The Environment Agency (EA) has fined a waste company, one of its directors and a tenant farmer after thousands of tonnes of waste was used to act as a flood defence in Essex.

Simon Hollington, the tenant farmer, pleaded guilty at Chelmsford Magistrates Court to knowingly causing the illegal deposit at Little Hayes Farm, Stow Maries in 2015.

T J Cottis Transport Limited and Jedd Cottis, a director at the company, both pleaded guilty to depositing the waste without an environmental permit and failing to comply with duty of care requirements. Overall, the two men and company were fined £19,430.

The court that 3,920 tonnes of inert waste was deposited on land at the farm between 15 April and 8 May 2015, breaching a waste exemption. Mrs Miriam Tordoff, prosecuting, told the court the waste was deposited there in an attempt to strengthen the existing flood defence at this location. The material used was construction and demolition waste from development sites and T J Cottis Transport Ltd.'s own permitted waste treatment facility.

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The waste consisted of mainly soil and stones but also included concrete, brick, plastic, glass, wood and plasterboard. However, it was not suitable for the construction of flood defences.

Mr Hollington employed T J Cottis to deliver waste to land at the farm. The company paid Mr Hollington £4,800 to deposit the waste. The company accepted that they saved £24,000 in landfill charges by depositing the waste on Mr Hollington's land.

In addition, the work was also carried out without a flood defence consent or permission from Natural England.

The EA said the area is within an environmentally sensitive area which benefits from protection as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), a Special Protection Area, a Special Area of Conservation and RAMSAR site.

The court heard the site did not comply with the U1 exemption, which only allows 1,000 tonnes of soil and stones to be used for construction purposes. Almost four times this amount was deposited onto the land before the activity was stopped by Natural England and the Environment Agency.

EA enforcement team leader, Lesley Robertson, said: "This case highlights to landowners that risk taking is not acceptable, whether it is a risk that concerns human health or the environment. Owning a piece of land means accepting a responsibility to the surrounding area and all that resides there, be it business, homes or wildlife.

"If you want to operate under a waste exemption you must register that exemption with the Environment Agency. Each registration lasts 3 years and will then expire unless you re-register. Each exemption has specific limits and conditions you need to operate within. If you don't, you will not be exempt from needing a permit and may face enforcement action"

(LM/MH)