Local Council threatening Fly Tipping Prosecution ***Resolved***

[Homer67]

OK guys, looking for some guidance on this:  Friends on mine live on a new build private estate which has a fenced border with Local Authority land.

 

On the LA land the border with the fence is marked by conifer trees planted on the LA side which have grown out of control so several of the home owners recently had them trimmed on their side so they are flush with their back fences.

 

All the trimmings were left on the LA side as the contractor said the trimmings belonged to the Council and it would be theft to remove them, they piled up the trimmings at the back of my friend's fence.

 

Today my friends get a letter from the LA - please see attached. Basically they are theatening him with a flytipping prosecution but require him to repond to their letter which as far as I can see is only nessecary to get him to admit he is responsible.

 

Naturally my friends are not happy about this as several households had the LA's trees trimmed and all of the cuttings were piled together.

 

My initial thought on reading the letter is that the LA can't do anything unless my friends admit it was them who cut the trees and left the waste there.

 

Or should they respond and deny all knowledge and say several households had the trees cut at the same time and they are not responsible for the waste?

 

 

 

[AndyOrch]

Topic moved to Local Authority Forum.

 

I would tell your friend to write back and explain as above that the conifers cuttings belonged to the LA and that the LA have been negligent in maintaining them and they were causing a nuisance on private land to several residents. A private contractor was used to trim the conifers for several residents and all the trimmings were gathered to one spot for easy collection and disposal.

 

Under The Environmental Protection Act  1990 section 33 you have not disposed or deposited controlled waste unauthorised as stated because the trimmings were left on the LA land who own the conifers.

 

Quote

Failure to respond to this request may result in this matter being referred to ur Legal Department for consideration of Prosecution

 

 

Andy

[stu007]

Hi

 

1. Have all seven residents complained officially to the Local Authority of the overgrown conifers and had a response in writing?

 

2. Were the Local Authority informed that the several residents were employing a contractor to cut back their conifer trees due to them being overgrown?

 

I would also suggest asking the contractor that carried out the work if they could do a letter for you explaining the work they carried out and the advice given about trimming as they remain the LA property.

 

[Homer67]

Thanks Guys, I'll ask the questions and come back

[Homer67]

Update on this, my friends emailed the LA with basically what Andyorch said above and have received an email back saying thanks, the matter is closed and no further action will be taken.

 

Thanks guys.

[AndyOrch]

[ericsbrother]

Usual public body screws up and blames someone else for their errors.

my worst example of  that sort of incompetence was whe I lived in a terraced house and a buddleia was growing out of the roof of the property next door that belonged to the council and damaging the dividing firewall. I cut it down and they threatened prosecution because it was a tree conservation area.

I sent letter and photograph of the " before" to local paper and all of a sudden it was all a misunderstanding , the inspector thought it was a differnt tree etc

 

It makes you wionder how much they spend on such things overall though.