Environment Agency officers working with London Borough of Bexley, the Met Police Road Traffic Unit and Openreach were out again in Bexley. They were checking vehicles carrying waste or which routinely carry waste as part of their business, to make sure their paperwork was in order.

The Environment Agency was inspecting vehicles to check they had a valid waste carrier’s licence, and that they had a required waste transfer note describing what waste they were carrying, where they picked it up and where they were taking it.

The Environment Agency and its partners seized 2 vehicles for various vehicle defects. They also issued 12 Fixed Penalty Notices for not being registered as a waste carrier, and other duty of care offences, after they stopped 34 vehicles carrying waste.

Matt Higginson, Environment Manager for the Environment Agency, said:

We regularly run these multi agency road stops to check waste collectors are compiling with the law. As the results from the roadstop shows, we will not hesitate to use our enforcement powers.

These road stops are also a useful tactic to obtain intelligence on further criminality as one of the waste collectors, who wasn’t registered as a waste carrier, was taking waste to an unauthorised site on the Darent Industrial Estate. We will now be carrying out further investigations on the waste carrier and the site.

Everyone has their part to play in stopping waste crime. To help avoid giving your waste to an illegal waste carrier and your waste ending up at an illegal waste site, we encourage you to ask for your waste collector’s waste carrier’s registration number and ask to see their waste transfer note. They must be able to produce both. We also encourage people to avoid paying in cash.

Joint investigations will continue with the Environment Agency and if convicted as a result of legal action, those responsible could face extensive fines and even prison sentences.

Anyone who suspects illegal waste activity is reminded to report it to our 24 hour hotline by calling 0800 80 70 60, or anonymously contacting Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

You can check your waste collectors waste carriers registration online or call 03708 506 506.