Farmer issued with £36,000 confiscation order due to rubbish dumped on land

The farmer allowed hundreds of tonnes of waste to sit on his land (Photo: Environment Agency)
The farmer allowed hundreds of tonnes of waste to sit on his land (Photo: Environment Agency)

A farmer has been issued with a £36,000 confiscation order from the Environment Agency after allowing tonnes of waste to be dumped on his land.

The farmer, Matthew Brown from Carr Farm in Rochdale, allowed hundreds of tonnes of waste to sit on his land.

The waste began to emit an odour associated with a landfill, according to the Environment Agency.

432 tonnes of waste were dumped on his farm, which included plastic, glass and textiles.

An investigation found that Mr Brown had ‘allowed third parties to bring waste onto his land where it had been deposited and used to infill areas of the farm’.

The Environment Agency had previously warned Mr Brown against the waste dumping because he did not have a permit or exemption for the tipping.

In September last year, Mr Brown was handed a 10-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work due to the unlawful waste operation.

The Environment Agency then proceeded with a Proceeds of Crime Act investigation. £36,720 has thus been confiscated from Mr Brown.