Latest news with #environmentalcrime
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'No excuse' warning to litter louts as fines up to £1,000 planned
Litter louts have been warned 'there's no excuse for ruining our streets' as penalties of up to £1,000 could be introduced for environmental offences. Liverpool Council's cabinet is to consider plans to hike up fines for those caught littering, fly-tipping and leaving graffiti when they meet next week. With more than £12m spent each year on cleaning litter and fly-tipping across the city, the local authority is also expected to sign off on a plan to contract a firm to crackdown on environmental crime. Subject to agreement, a three year deal could be agreed with an as yet unnamed company to punish those who fail to keep the city clean. Additionally, the amount that litter louts pay for their offences is also poised to increase significantly. Ahead of that key decision, Laura Robertson-Collins, cabinet member for communities, neighbourhoods and streetscene, has fired a message to those who think it's acceptable to leave their rubbish behind. READ MORE: Comedian 'not welcome at any venues' run by Liverpool club after 'vile' comment READ MORE: Family issue plea after man, 39, goes missing in Peru Between February 2024 and January this year, Liverpool Council received 3,608 requests for street cleansing and 16,683 requests to remove fly tipping, including 3,521 reports of dumped black refuse bags, 3,124 pieces of furniture, 531 shopping trollies and 1016 fridge/freezers. More than 100 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued in an eight month period generated £10,000 in fines from offenders. These will now be increased to reflect the city's new approach. Penalties are proposed to increase for litter and graffiti with a tiered approach towards fly-tipping offences. Breaches of public space protection orders (PSPO) will also be subject to harsher penalties. Should senior councillors agree, the charge for dropping litter will increase to £150, up from £80, with an early payment option of £100 if paid within 14 days. Unwelcome graffiti and fly-posting is also facing sterner punishment, doubling to £200. A tiered approach is being considered which seeks to acknowledge the seriousness of the offence and the estimated cost of removing fly tipped waste. New levels of penalty will be based on a criteria identified by investigating officers, with the dumping of up to three bags equating to a £500 fine. More than three bags but less than a van load would cost £750 while a load equivalent to a light commercial van like a Ford Transit or 'clear evidence of waste being commercial, or business waste transported by an unlicensed waste carrier' would land those responsible with a £1,000 penalty. Anyone who fails to pick up after their dog will also face sterner punishment, with the penalty for not picking up dog mess increasing to £100. A PSPO was introduced across the city in November 2022 to protect Liverpool's green spaces. Cllr Robertson-Collins said: 'Residents have told us that tackling environmental offences must be a priority, and we are committed to taking action. Fly-tipping, littering and dog fouling are a blight on our city and there's no excuse for ruining our streets. 'These tougher penalties send a strong message that it will not be tolerated. Liverpool is a fantastic city that we should be proud to call home, and we all need to do our part in looking after it.' An additional £1.5m was approved during March's budget council meeting to increase environmental enforcement. The council said high levels of litter, fly tipping, poorly managed household and commercial waste make communities 'feel unloved and forgotten.' Cabinet documents outlined how the £80 fine level had not changed for a number of years and fixed penalty levels in Liverpool have remained static during that time. The report added: 'The evidence suggests, particularly for the offence of fly tipping, which is increasing year on year, the level does not act as an effective deterrent to committing the offence.'
New York Times
25-05-2025
- New York Times
Florida Man Sentenced to 30 Days for Shooting and Poisoning Dolphins
For years, Zackary Barfield of Panama City, Fla., made his living on the Gulf of Mexico guiding fishing charters, often with dolphins trailing close behind, riding the boat's wake. But when the dolphins began stealing red snapper from his clients' lines, prosecutors say, the longtime captain turned predator. Between 2022 and 2023, Mr. Barfield laced baitfish with pesticide and shot at dolphins from his boat, doing so once in front of 'two elementary-aged children,' the U.S. attorney's office for the Northern District of Florida said on Friday in a statement. Mr. Barfield, 31, was sentenced this week to 30 days in prison and fined $51,000 for three counts of poisoning and shooting dolphins, violating both the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, according to federal prosecutors. His sentence will be followed by one year of supervised release. Mr. Barfield pleaded guilty to the charges on Feb. 12, according to court documents. Prosecutors said Mr. Barfield understood the harm of the pesticide he used — methomyl — but fed it to dolphins anyway. Exposure to methomyl can disrupt the nervous system of humans and mammals. The Environmental Protection Agency restricts its use to management of plant and soil-borne insects in farming. 'He knew the regulations protecting dolphins, yet he killed them anyway — once in front of children,' said Adam Gustafson, an acting assistant attorney general in the Justice Department's environment and natural resources division. Mr. Barfield's lawyer, Nathan Prince, declined to comment on Sunday. The investigation into Mr. Barfield began in 2023, after a special agent at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's fisheries division was tipped off about a fisherman killing bottlenose dolphins, the agency said in a statement on Friday. Using a 12-gauge shotgun, Mr. Barfield shot at least five dolphins, with one confirmed killed. One of the shootings happened on a charter vessel with multiple witnesses on board, according to NOAA. The poisonings most likely resulted in many more deaths, the authorities said. 'Based on evidence obtained in the course of the investigation, Barfield fed an estimated 24–70 dolphins poison-laden baitfish on charter trips that he captained,' NOAA said. 'Barfield stated he was 'frustrated with dolphins 'stealing' his catch.'' Along the southeast coast, the tension between anglers and dolphins is a longstanding, well-known struggle, NOAA said. From 2014 to 2024, at least 21 dolphins were killed by gunshot wounds, arrows, explosives and other sharp objects, according to NOAA data. Officials said that figure is most likely a severe undercount.
The Independent
19-05-2025
- The Independent
Man and business charged over 27-tonne mound of waste that blocked road
A man and a business have been charged over a fly-tipping incident where a mound of waste weighing more than 27 tonnes cut off access to homes and businesses. The pile of waste, measuring over 20-metres-long and two metres high, was dumped in Watery Lane, on the outskirts of Lichfield in Staffordshire, in the early hours of January 20, Lichfield District Council said. The council said a man from Uttoxeter faces charges including depositing waste, endangering road users, dangerous driving, breaching HGV drivers' hours regulations, and obstructing the highway. It added that the company, which is based near Stafford, has been charged with depositing the waste and obstructing the highway. The council said its environmental health officers raided a site in Staffordshire on March 21 and seized a lorry believed to have been used in the incident. It said it has retained the vehicle and will apply to the court for its forfeiture if the defendants are convicted. The man and the company will appear at Cannock Magistrates' Court on July 1. Councillor Doug Pullen, leader of Lichfield District Council, said: 'This was an appalling act of environmental crime. 'Local people woke up to find their only route to and from their homes completely blocked, and the cost to the taxpayer of removing and disposing of the waste was nearly £10,000. 'Thanks to the swift action of our environmental health officers, suspects were quickly identified, leading to these charges. 'We take a zero-tolerance approach to fly-tipping, because that's what our communities rightly expect. 'This case is about more than prosecution. It's about protecting our environment, supporting law-abiding businesses, safeguarding local people and sending a strong message that illegal dumping will not be tolerated.'
BBC News
14-05-2025
- BBC News
Business fined after ignoring Wolverhampton fly-tipping penalty
A business that ignored a £400 council penalty for fly-tipping has been ordered to pay more than £8,800 by of Wolverhampton Council said two men, using a van that had been hired by business Sergiu Razvan Ed Ltd, dumped bags of rubbish at night in Byrne Road, incident was caught on a camera that had been installed by the council to monitor fly tipping. Officers were able to trace the vehicle to a hire company and identify who had control of the van at the time of the incident. The council said the director of the business, Sergiu Razvan, 32, admitted to leaving items on the footpath and agreed to pay a £400 fixed penalty. However, after several weeks, the fine remained a result, a fly tipping prosecution was brought against the company itself, and the business was found guilty in its absence during a hearing at Dudley Magistrates Court on 2 business was fined £5,000, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £2,000 and costs of £1,851.88. City of Wolverhampton Council said the costs awarded to the council would be reinvested into its environmental crime service. 'Unpleasant and illegal' Magistrates were told that at 21:40 GMT on 27 February, 2024, a van was driven from Napier Road to Byrne Road where two men dumped refuse sacks of waste on the footpath. The van then drove the council issuing a £400 Fixed Penalty Notice and a reminder letter, no payment was received from the business and the prosecution was court action supports a council Shop a Tipper campaign, where suspects' images are shared to help identify cases can result in residents receiving a £100 gift cabinet member Bhupinder Gakhal said: "Fly tipping is a blight on the local environment and we are continually working to tackle this unpleasant and illegal behaviour."We will take all necessary measures to keep our city clean for residents to enjoy."The council reminded residents that waste could be disposed of free of charge at the city's household waste and recycling centres. Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
12-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Reading Borough Council promises crackdown on fly-tipping
Tougher enforcement on fly-tipping and littering is due to begin in a Berkshire town this month as part of a push to crack down on the Borough Council said it was seeking to boost penalties for fly-tipping and littering by using an external director of environmental and commercial services Chris Wheeler said fly-tipping was a key concern for residents, and the new strategy would result in "more actions against those found to be littering and fly-tipping".The new enforcement arrangement began this month but is subject to an acquisition process. If a full tendering process is required, the service would be implemented in the autumn, according to a report by Mr Wheeler. The new arrangement comes at no extra charge through the council."It's intended to address the key concerns of residents around litter and fly-tipping and other related environmental crime," said Mr Wheeler."This type of approach is new to Reading, and we wanted to be transparent about the benefits of the approach, the risks and the planned controls to manage some of those risks."In taking this approach, it will result in increased activity and more actions against those found to be littering and fly-tipping."Karen Rowland, lead councillor for environmental services said the arrangement was set on tackling the issue in a cost effective added the arrangement would allow the authority's recycling and environmental enforcement officers to focus on the government's planned Simpler Recycling plans were welcomed by councillors, including independent Sarah Hacker and Green's Sarah Magon. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
