The EA said the scale of the activity, which ran for two years, was “completely off the scale” and caused serious disruption to rural communities near Iken.
Ipswich Crown Court heard how brick, concrete and other materials from housing developments were dumped at Hill Farm and The Anchorage between 2016 and 2018, amounting to more than 121,000 tonnes.
‘Turned a blind eye’
The court was told that haulage and waste management company Nicholls, of Kesgrave, transported the waste to the farms on behalf of the East Suffolk Water Management Board, but did so without the required environmental permits.
Investigators found both the vast quality of waste and its composition meant the two locations it had been taken to were illegal. The waste contained wood, plastic, concrete and brick that was wrongly described as soil.
More than half the illegal waste, around 62,000 tonnes, was supplied by Howard Construction (Anglia), based near Woodbridge.
Norwich-based Barconn and Ipswich company Landex provided around a third again.
Judge Martyn Levett said the conduct was negligent and criticised the Board for having “turned a blind eye” to what was happening.
Counsel for the EA Richard Beynon also told the court that the five organisations had the people and experience to know how to operate legally, but chose not to.
Lesley Robertson, Enforcement Team Leader at the EA, said: “We won’t hesitate to prosecute those responsible for illegal waste activities.
“Anyone who transports or disposes of waste has a duty of care to ensure it is handled correctly and taken to a legitimate permitted facility.”
Fines for waste crime
The Board was fined £4,000 for its role in the offences and Nicholls was handed the largest fine of £26,666.
In March, the company had already been ordered to pay £425,000 under the Proceeds of Crime Act, a confiscation order designed to prevent firms from profiting from criminal activity.
The court heard that Nicholls had received the waste from three construction companies, who admitted they failed in their duty of care to check where the material was going.
Howard Construction was fined £18,000, Barconn received a penalty of £14,000 and Landex was ordered to pay £8,000.
Robertson added: “The £425,000 proceeds of crime order for Nicholls and fines against all five organisations show how serious Judge Levett considered this to be.
“East Suffolk Water Management Board and Nicholls operated at a distinct commercial advantage.
“Waste was imported on a huge scale over a long period without the benefit of appropriate permits meant to protect the public and the environment.”
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