People fined hundreds of pounds for putting bins out incorrectly (original) (raw)

People have been fined hundreds of pounds for putting their bins out incorrectly in Carmarthenshire, figures released by the local county council reveal. The council has said it is dedicated to “ensuring a clean and safe environment by issuing a number of fixed penalty notices (FPNs) and enforcement actions”.

In August alone several residents were hit with penalty notices and fines starting from £100 a time for various offences including one woman who was hit in the pocket for leaving bins outside her home on the wrong day and another who was penalised for putting used puppy pads in blue recycling bags. For the latest Carmarthenshire news sign up to our newsletter here.

One man had to pay more than £600 after he was caught throwing a cigarette butt from his vehicle on a street in Carmarthen while another was issued with a FPN for fly-tipping carboard boxes among other things at a site in St Clears.

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A breakdown of the punishments handed out by Carmarthenshire Council in August can be seen below:

Littering Offences - £125 FPNs

Morrisons Recycling Facility, Trostre: A female resident of Penlan, Bryn, Llanelli, was issued an FPN for leaving a carrier bag containing a plate on the ground
Morrisons Recycling Facility, Llanelli: A female resident of Heol Gwyr, Llanelli, was issued an FPN for abandoning a black bag containing a fan surround at the site
Burry Port Recycling Facility: A female resident of Heol Gwendraeth, Burry Port, was issued an FPN for leaving a cardboard box on the ground
Morrisons Recycling Facility, Trostre: A female resident of Brynhyfryd was issued an FPN for depositing a bag of glass on the ground
Tesco Extra, Llanelli: A male resident from Felinfoel was issued an FPN for discarding McDonald’s packaging near the clothing banks
St Clears Bring Site: A female resident of St Clears was issued an FPN for leaving a cardboard box containing broken glass on the ground
Morrisons Carmarthen: A female resident of Ponthenry was fined for depositing a carrier bag full of household waste at the recycling facility

Abandonment of a Vehicle - £200 FPN

Pwll, Llanelli: A male resident of Swansea was fined £200 for abandoning a vehicle in the Pwll area

Fly-tipping - £400 FPN

St Clears Bring Site: A male resident of Carmarthen town was issued a £400 FPN for fly-tipping multiple cardboard boxes, books, and household waste, including a black and blue bag, at the site

Waste receptacle offences - £100 FPNs

Carmarthen (Sycamore Way): A female resident was fined for placing her waste out on the incorrect day
Ammanford: A resident was issued an FPN for placing waste in the incorrect location
Llanelli (Burry Street): A female resident was issued an FPN for placing dirty items, including used puppy pads, in blue recycling bags and for incorrect waste collection timing
Carmarthen (Belvedere Avenue): A female resident was issued an FPN for placing glass and contaminated items in blue recycling bags
Llanelli (Station Road): A female resident was issued an FPN for placing contaminated waste in blue bags on the wrong day and time
Llanelli (Stafford Street): Two female residents were issued FPNs for placing dirty items and food waste in blue recycling bags.
Llanelli (Burry Street): Another female resident was issued an FPN for placing textiles and dirty items in blue bags and for incorrect waste collection timing
Carmarthen (Belvedere Avenue): A resident was issued an FPN for placing black and blue bags out on the wrong day and contaminating blue recycling bags

Prosecutions

Water Street, Carmarthen: On January 3 this year a man was witnessed throwing a cigarette butt from his vehicle. Despite being offered the opportunity to pay a £125 FPN he failed to do so. The case was referred to the magistrates resulting in a £270 fine, £300 in costs, and an £88 victim surcharge
Vaughan Street, Llanelli: A Llanelli resident was seen discarding a cigarette end in January 2024. After failing to pay the £125 FPN the case was brought to court. He was then issued a £120 FPN and the magistrates imposed £200 in court costs and a £48 victim surcharge

Enforcement notices Issued

39 section 46 Notices under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 for failure to adhere to waste disposal regulations
12 section 47 Notices under the same act for offences related to commercial and industrial waste disposal

The council has said it hands out fines and FPNs to discourage people from committing these offences and in order to protect the environment. Aled Vaughan Owen, cabinet member for climate change, decarbonisation, and sustainability at Carmarthenshire Council, said: “These enforcement actions demonstrate our ongoing commitment to protecting the environment. We urge residents to adhere to waste disposal regulations and to report any offences.”

The figures released by the council cover the whole of August – a month where the local authority came under fire for its handling of waste collection around the bank holiday weekend. Residents were left with no choice but to pile rubbish on top of other rubbish outside their homes because a new approach to bin collections encountered “increased disruptions” caused by a lack of staff.

Previously in Carmarthenshire collections have been made on bank holidays themselves or residents are notified, via email or a social media post, that collections may be a day or so late. But prior to the recent bank holiday on August 26 Carmarthenshire Council sent thousands of letters to residents informing them of a new collection date for that week. But for many that new collection date came and went with bags of waste lined up on kerbs for days on end or even a full week in some cases.

One resident called the situation “shocking” and described it as a potential “environmental hazard” with some complaining that black bags as well as blue recycling bags were late being collected. After issues were raised Edward Thomas, cabinet member for transport, waste, and infrastructure services at the council, said: “We have listened to our residents and this bank holiday we piloted a new approach, which included direct communication with impacted residents with the aim of improving our service by having Monday collections distributed throughout the working week.

“This has been a success in most areas across the county. However we have experienced increased disruptions within the Carmarthen area due to unexpected staffing resource issues at the Carmarthen depot. We will be undertaking a review of this pilot to understand challenges, problems, and areas for improvement in readiness for the next bank holiday collections."

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