Man pleads guilty after his waste found in rural lane

A MAN has been ordered to pay £415 clean up costs after his waste was found dumped at a rural lane in Ashton.

Tameside Magistrates’ Court heard Ainsley Meanock, of Simpson Grove, Worsley,  was given a fixed penalty notice by Tameside Council relating to waste dumped at land off Twirl Hill Lane, in Ashton on 15 April 2024.

However Mr Meanock didn’t pay the fine and nor did he reply to any further correspondence from the council and he did not attend court when summoned in January 2025. Following this, a warrant was issued for his arrest – the warrant was executed during a police traffic stop in May 2025 and he was further bailed to attend court in July. The July hearing was adjourned due to a family emergency. 

Mr Meanock finally attended court on 29 August 2025 and entered a guilty plea to failing in his duty of care under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. He claimed that he was not responsible for the fly tipping but admitting that he had passed the waste to an unlicensed waste carrier who later flytipped the waste – therefore not complying with his legal duty to ensure waste is only transferred to authorised persons or registered waste carriers.

Mr Meanock told the court that he had not received any of the paperwork regarding the fixed penalty notice due to moving house. He was ordered to pay £415 compensation towards the removal of the waste, to be paid in 28 days.

Tameside Council Executive Member for Environmental Services and Neighbourhoods Cllr Laura Boyle said: “This case serves as yet another reminder that all residents are legally required to ensure their waste is disposed of responsibly and we urge people to always make sure they use a licensed waste carrier to dispose of their waste.

“Flytipping is a blight on our communities – spoiling our local neighbourhoods and countryside - and we will always take enforcement action where we find evidence of those responsible. In 2023/24 we gave out 236 fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping – more than anywhere else in the north west but we know there is much more work to do and we need our communities to work with us to help tackle this.”

Residents can check the register of authorised waste carriers here - https://environment.data.gov.uk/public-register/view/search-waste-carriers-brokers

Other checks they can make include:

• Recording details of the business and of any vehicle used which can be linked to an authorised operator
• a record of the checks made including the operators registration, permit or exemption number
• a receipt for the transaction which includes the business details of a registered operator
• a copy or photograph of the carrier’s waste license or site’s permit