Illegal tyre waste operation company and director ordered to pay £69k by courts

A Powys company and its director have been ordered to pay £69,000 in fines and costs for serious breaches of environmental regulations.

The case involved the unlawful operation of a waste site and disposal of waste tyres at several sites in Powys.

Benji and Co Limited and director Peter Rees appeared in Welshpool Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 14 October, and were sentenced following guilty pleas at previous court hearings.

The company was fined £10,000 for each of four offences, totalling £40,000. It was also ordered to pay £15,000 in prosecution costs.

Between January and June 2022, the company operated a waste site without the required environmental permit at Gwern Tyddyn, Llanidloes, storing and treating tyres unlawfully.

Between March and December 2022, baled tyres were deposited on land at Newhouse Farm in Aberhafesp, Rhossllyn in Nantmel, and Llys Fynydd in Llanidloes, without a valid permit.

These offences breach the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 and the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

Peter Rees, company director, was fined £10,000 for his role in the offences. He pleaded guilty to consenting to, being complicit in, or neglecting his duties in connection with the company’s unlawful activity between January and June 2022.

Both the company and Mr Rees were required to pay a £2,000 victim surcharge each.

Jeremy Goddard, team leader for the waste and enforcement team, mid Wales, of NRW, said:

“This case highlights the importance of following environmental rules. Permits and exemptions exist to protect people, nature and the wider environment.

“Ignoring them puts communities and the environment at risk and undermines the integrity of the waste management system. We will always take action where we find serious non-compliance.

“The prosecution reflects NRW’s commitment to tackling illegal waste activity and holding those responsible to account.”

NRW officers found vast quantities of end-of-life tyres - which included baled, shredded, and loose tyres - stored in unsafe conditions and far beyond the legal limits allowed under waste exemptions.

Despite repeated visits and advice from NRW dating back to 2018, the company failed to bring the site into compliance.

Officers observed more than 200 tyre bales, over 1,000 loose tyres, and an estimated 40 tonnes of shredded tyre waste.

The site posed a significant fire risk and breached the conditions of both T8 and U2 waste exemptions, which are designed to allow limited, low-risk waste activities under strict controls.

Furthermore, having carried out an illegal waste operation at its own site, the company then cut corners and transported waste to other sites with those deposits also not conforming with the environmental permitting regulations.

The company gained financially by avoiding the costs of proper waste management, including permit fees and compliance with safety standards.

The case also highlights the responsibility of company officers to ensure compliance with environmental laws and the consequences of failing to do so.