Heavy fine for dumping engine oil in Dunstable

A Dunstable man has been fined more than £2,450 after being caught on CCTV fly-tipping used motor oil and engine oil filters in French’s Avenue, Dunstable.
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David Roe of Hurlock Close, was caught after a business based in French’s Avenue got in touch with Central Bedfordshire Council to say that they had film evidence of the fly-tipping.

The CCTV footage revealed that the waste was illegally fly-tipped from a vehicle driven by Mr Roe.

When interviewed, Roe confirmed that he recognised the waste and that he had fly-tipped on two separate occasions. He also said that he had fly-tipped around seventy 20-litre containers from August to December 2017 outside the council’s Household Waste Recycling Centre in French’s Avenue.

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Court news

Roe, a mobile car service engineer, moved to Dunstable in August 2017. When he visited the council’s tidy tip in French’s Avenue, he was told that they could not allow disposal of this type of waste. Despite the warning, Mr Roe continued to try and dispose of his business waste and would leave the motor oil and filters outside the tidy tip gates.

He attended Luton Crown Court in January 2019, and was found guilty and fined a total of £2,453.

Jeanette Keyte, Head of Community Safety, Parking and Programmes at Central Bedfordshire Council, said: “In this particular case, the potential environmental risk posed by the abandoned waste could have had a catastrophic effect if the liquid had leaked into the surrounding countryside.

“Dumping waste in this way is hugely irresponsible. Mr Roe had an obligation to his customers, who had paid him to dispose of their waste correctly. By bringing this case to prosecution, we have shown that we will take action against any business that illegally disposes of their waste.

“We would like to sincerely thank the local business who supplied us with the CCTV evidence which assisted us in securing this prosecution.”

Residents can report any incidents of fly tipping to the council’s customer services team on 0300 300 8302 or by emailing [email protected].