A Tyrone man was fined for waste offences yesterday, August 8, according to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).
Kevin McGrade of Aghnamoe Road, Dromore, Co Tyrone, was fined £500 (€553) at Omagh Magistrates’ Court for depositing controlled waste – and was given a two-year conditional discharge for keeping controlled waste without waste management authorisation.
Officials from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) visited a site on four different occasions between March 2015 and June 2016, at lands adjacent to 58 Aghnamoe Road, Dromore, Co. Tyrone, where approximately 2,600t of controlled waste was dumped.
The waste consisted of concrete, brick, insulation material, plastic piping, silage wrap, clay, hard plastic, glass, electrical wiring, timber and metal mixed with soil.
McGrade was found to not have the proper waste authorisation to deposit or keep controlled waste on the site. As well as the £500 fine and conditional discharge, McGrade also had to pay a £15 offender’s levy.
In agreement with the NIEA, the landowner – at his own expense – got rid of the controlled waste which had been illegally deposited on the land.
It was noted that the site was remediated to a satisfactory standard, providing a positive outcome environmentally.
An NIEA spokesperson who commented on the matter said: “This is the type of outcome which we encourage – one where responsible parties take full responsibility for the clean-up of affected sites, preventing further public expenditure.”
This wasn’t the first fine handed out this week relating to waste offences.
Earlier this week, Corramore Construction Ltd pleaded guilty and was fined £750 (€828) along with a £15 (€17) Offenders Levy at Magherafelt Magistrates’ Court in Co. Derry, for causing polluting discharge to enter a waterway.
On March 22, 2016, Water Quality Inspectors working for the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) investigated a report of pollution in the Altagoan River at Gortnaskey Road, Draperstown.
The inspectors found three separate pipes discharging liquid into the river, taking samples from each. All three samples confirmed that the discharge contained poisonous, noxious or polluting matter which was described as “potentially harmful to fish life” in the waterway, DAERA announced.
