Waste business prosecuted for operating without environmental permit

Thousands of old microwave ovens have been illegally stored by a waste business, prompting prosecution from the Environment Agency.

James Stephen Pearson, 50, admitted running the business between October 2008 and January 2010 at Hunmanby Industrial Estate in North Yorkshire and of operating without an environmental permit.

An environment officer told Pearson to cease activity until he gained an environmental permit but he failed to do so. Craig Burman, prosecuting for the Environment Agency at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court, said that Pearson had collected £10,227 for scrap received during 2009.

Pearson was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay full prosecution costs of £2,547.59. Environmental crime officer Steve Williamson said, “People who choose not to take the advice that we give them can expect to feel the full force of the law. Mr Pearson was breaking microwaves up to strip out valuable components from inside. If this is not done safely, it can pollute the environment and pose a health risk,” he said.

Any businesses which sell or are disposing of electrical or electronic equipment must register with the Environment Agency under the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations.

The regulations, which were brought in in 2007, aim to prevent illegal exports, where items often are dismantled in unsafe conditions and the remains dumped.

All businesses must ensure that any waste they generate goes directly to a registered waste operator rather than being dumped. This applies to waste electrical and electronic equipment.