Four vehicles have been seized on green belt land in St Mary Cray as part of ongoing work to stop fly-tipping and unauthorised waste disposal.
The investigation is continuing following the discovery of large mounds of burnt waste concealed in wooded areas on land known as Waldens Farm, which indicate the land was being used as an illegal waste disposal site. The council’s Neighbourhood Investigation Officers, with support from the police executed two warrants to gain access to this privately owned site, where a man was also arrested.
The scale of the mounds indicate that hundreds of tonnes of waste may have been illegally disposed of. Intention of closure notices were also erected at the site detailing the proposed closure of the site in line with section 76 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 due to the “substantial public nuisance and environmental harm resulting from persistent unlawful activities at the site.”
A council spokesperson said, “It appears that an illegal industrial scale waste disposal operation has been set-up, with the significant profits this can generate. We are limited by what we can share at this time as our investigation work continues but we will also look at the serious environmental damage that will no doubt have been caused as well. We would like to thank the police for their ongoing support in this work, including in this operation.”
A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said, “Environmental crime is a serious concern and working closely with the council to support their work is part of the way that we help tackle this locally as part of the Bromley Safer Partnership. It is a stark reminder as well to us all to carefully check the credentials of anyone we are proposing to use, to dispose of waste, including checking they are a licensed waste carrier, to help ensure that waste is properly disposed of.”
Depending on the outcome of the investigation, the seized vehicles, which include two flatbed tipper vehicles, a mini skip van and a box panel van, could be crushed.
The green belt land, known as Waldens Farm is made up of approximately 800 small ’leisure plots’, totalling approximately 70 acres, when the former orchards were fragmented and sold in 1974. The Estate was subdivided on a ‘grid-iron’ basis into plots of approximately 10 metres by 30 metres.
Enviro crimes can also be reported at www.bromley.gov.uk/envirocrime, with rewards of up to £500 available for information leading to prosecution.
Ends
Notes to editors:
- The vehicles were seized under Section 34B of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
- The council operates an enviro crime reward scheme with rewards of up to £500 available for information leading to the successful prosecution of offenders.
For media enquiries, please contact Andrew Rogers, Head of Public Affairs on 020 8461 7670 or email Andrew.Rogers@bromley.gov.uk.