A MAN who dumped rubbish on MOD land in Wiltshire has been fined £400.

He was also ordered to clear up all the waste left on land near Tidworth.

The culprit admitted to dumping the waste when interviewed by Wiltshire Council’s Environmental enforcement officers and was issued with a fixed penalty notice.

Wiltshire Council has also issued its sixth household duty of care notice to a man from Warminster for failing to check the licence details of a person whom he paid to take waste away.

The waste was subsequently found fly-tipped on Ministry of Defence (MOD) land on Salisbury Plain.

Wiltshire Council jointly investigated the fly-tip with the MOD Police and traced it back to the householder. The council was unable to trace those responsible for dumping the waste because the resident failed to comply with their legal duty of care in checking the person who took their waste away was a registered waste carrier.

If the resident had checked the waste carrier’s licence details with the Environment Agency and provided additional, required information to Wiltshire Council, they would have avoided the large fine and it would have allowed the fly-tipper to be traced.

Cllr Bridget Wayman, Cabinet Member for Highways, Transport and Waste, said: “The fly-tipping fixed penalty notice is one example of the range of enforcement tools available to the council to combat this disgusting act.

“It blights our environment and costs us and MOD tens of thousands to clear each year. The perpetrators could have easily taken their waste to the local Household Recycling Centre or used their own household waste, which is collected fortnightly.

“I would urge anyone with any information about fly-tipping in Wiltshire to report it to us with as much information as possible, and any successful prosecution or payment of a Fixed Penalty Notice will earn a voucher of up to £200 for the person who reported it, as part of our We’re Targeting Fly-tippers (WTF) campaign.”

Cllr Robert Yuill, Portfolio Holder for Waste, said: “This is the sixth duty of care fixed penalty issued by Wiltshire Council since its recent introduction. It highlights the important role the public plays in combating fly-tipping and stopping it at source.

“We appreciate that with Christmas coming, householders may generate more waste than normal and may look on social media sites for cheap ‘man with a van’ and ‘tip run’ type adverts from people offering to take waste very cheaply. But you could find yourself with a costly fixed penalty notice, a large bill for the clearance or criminal record if your waste is found to be fly-tipped.

“I would strongly advise anyone against using these operators without fully checking their waste carrier’s licence details with the Environment Agency, noting down the licence details and asking for a written receipt stating the collector’s details. We would like to thank the MOD Police for assisting Wiltshire Council with this investigation.”