Devon haulier and councillor fined for illegal dumping

A North Devon haulier and local councillor has pleaded guilty to five offences of illegally depositing and storing waste at sites around Ilfracombe.

Paul Crabb, who runs groundworks firm Crabb's Haulage, and is a member of North Devon District Council and Ilfracombe Town Council - and a former mayor of Ilfracombe - was ordered to pay £3,000 in fines and £10,000 in costs by Exeter Crown Court.

In April 2008 the Environment Agency visited Crabb's site at Old Gasworks Yard, Hele Bay, Ilfracombe, which has an O-licence for four vehicles and two trailers, to find piles of waste, including scrap metal, wood, stone, fridges and crushed cars. Crabb was told he did not have an environmental permit to deposit waste at the site.

In February 2009, a pile of waste rubble and bricks deposited by Crabb's firm was found at Lee Meadow Farm in Ilfracombe, but Crabb failed to respond to requests to provide waste transfer notes.

The Environment Agency then visited Old Gasworks Yard in June 2009 to find new waste, including plastics, polystyrene, treated wood, plasterboard, fibreglass insulation, guttering, bituminous roofing felt and cement packaging. The court was told the haulage yard lacked the necessary facilities to ensure the waste operations would not cause pollution, excessive dust or smells and did not have a permit for the activities.

In addition a substantial amount of waste hardcore had been taken to Honeycleave Farm in Mullacott. Although the site had permission to use the material for construction purposes the deposits were not recorded in accordance with the regulations.

Sean McKay for the Environment Agency, said: "The defendant chose to ignore the Agency's advice and operate illegally despite repeated warnings and left the Agency no option but to prosecute him."

The case against Crabb, of Claremont House, Lawn Place, Ilfracombe, was brought under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and Environmental Permitting Regulations 2007.