This policy was updated 4 July 2024
Removed the references to commercial waste and replaced with business waste.
The aim of this document is to determine good practice and to demonstrate clarity and consistency in the delivery of environmental enforcement duties and powers relevant to the Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team, in accordance with the Dorset Council’s environmental enforcement policy.
Enforcement is any formal or informal action taken to prevent or rectify infringements of legislation. The enforcement options may differ where different areas of legislation are used but the principles of application should remain constant and consistent.
Enforcement includes visits, inspections, verbal and written advice or information on legal requirements and good practice, assistance with compliance, written warnings, the serving of statutory notices, issuing fixed penalty notices, prosecution, seizure and detention and injunctions. Liaison and co-operation with other enforcement authorities and organisations will also occur where appropriate.
The details contained within this document will offer guidance and assistance to officers involved in enforcement activities in Environmental Enforcement. These core functions relate to enforcement for:
Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will routinely consult and work with other agencies including the Police, Environment Agency, DVLA and the Highways Agency.
Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team has key legislative powers, under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA 1990), Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 (CNEA 2005) and other legislation relating to the environment. These offer a wide range of powers to enable Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team to fulfil the duties for which it is responsible.
All enforcement action taken by Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will be regarding the relevant statutory provisions and their amendments. The key pieces of legislation include:
A definitive Act for the structure and authority of waste management and the control of emissions in England, Wales, and Scotland. Part 1 sets out the regulations whereby the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs can set limits on emissions into the environment. Part 2 deals with regulations surrounding the controlled disposal of waste, either household, industrial or commercial, on land. It also addresses the regulations surrounding transportation, treatment, carrying and storage of waste.
The revised regulations came into force on 6 April 2012. These revoke and replace the Controlled Waste Regulations 1992. The regulations classify waste as household, industrial or commercial waste. They enable local authorities in England and Wales to charge for the collection and disposal of waste from non-domestic properties.
The Act provides local authorities with more effective powers to tackle poor environmental quality and anti-social behaviour. In particular, the Act includes sections on nuisance and abandoned vehicles, graffiti, waste, noise, and dogs. Many of the provisions relate to powers not duties.
States that local authorities have a duty under the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 to remove any vehicle abandoned on land in the open air or land part of a highway.
The Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 (c. 12) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which greatly expands law enforcement powers in addressing anti-social behaviour. It gives powers to issue community protection notices. These community protection notices deal with unreasonable, ongoing problems or nuisances which negatively affect the community’s quality of life by targeting the person responsible.
The Deregulation Act 2015 came into force on 15 June 2015 and involves the decriminalisation of waste receptacle offences in England under section 46 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
Local authorities are still able to issue FPNs under section 46A of the Environment Protection Act, but the deregulated civil process is lengthier and gives those in receipt of a notice greater rights of appeal.
An offence is now committed only if there has been a failure, without reasonable excuse, to comply with requirements a local authority has made; and the failure to comply:
As the act ‘decriminalises’ waste receptacle offences, it is no longer possible in England to prosecute individuals for failure to comply with the Environmental Protection Act 1990. The FPN level of charge has been set at £100 with an early payment amount of £75. Unpaid FPNs are recovered summarily as civil debt.
The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (c.23) (RIPA) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, regulating the powers of public bodies to carry out surveillance and investigation, and covering the interception of communications.
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) (1984 c. 60) is an Act of Parliament which instituted a legislative framework for the powers of police officers in England and Wales to combat crime and provided codes of practice for the exercise of those powers.
The Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996 is a piece of statutory legislation in the United Kingdom that regulates the procedures of investigating and prosecution of criminal offences.
Enforcement actions against offences, as set out in this document, will require authorised officers to follow set procedures and protocols. This will ensure consistency in the collection of evidence and the type of enforcement actions applied. Enforcement action should only be taken if there is compelling and complete evidence of an offence having taken place.
The Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will use the following range of enforcement actions:
Information and advice
The first contact with a person reported to Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team or believed to be causing or permitting an offence, will be by advisory letter or verbal communication.
The enforcement officer’s role will be to inform, guide and support.
If written observations, suggestions or requirements are appropriate, such written guidance will clearly identify the nature of the complaint or problem and any remedial works that are required.
Any requirements made verbally or in writing will clearly identify whether they are mandatory or advisory in nature. If the requirements are mandatory, a timescale for compliance will be specified.
Informal written warnings may be issued to make clear that it will view any further breaches of legislation to be treated seriously and that these may be subject to enforcement action.
Written Warnings
Written warnings should only be used when there is evidence that shows beyond reasonable doubt that a person has committed an offence, and it is
considered to be inappropriate to issue a simple caution or Fixed Penalty Notice.
A written warning should contain the following information:
Simple cautions
The decision whether to issue a simple caution, or higher-level enforcement action, will relate to the nature of the offence and the attitude of the alleged offender.
As with all types of enforcement action, the alleged offender will be required to supply the officer with their personal details. These details cannot be used to issue any other type of enforcement action for that offence; however, they can be used in conjunction with future enforcement action.
Persons alleged to have committed an offence will only be issued with one simple caution and this will be kept on record for 5 years.
Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team can issue simple cautions (previously known as ‘Formal Cautions’) as an alternative to prosecution for less serious offences and where a person admits an offence and accepts the simple caution.
If a simple caution is offered and declined, prosecution will be considered.
Simple cautions must contain the following information:
An FPN will be issued to persons who are alleged to have committed an offence where it is considered to be the most appropriate enforcement action. This gives the alleged offender the opportunity of discharging any liability to conviction for the offence by payment of an FPN.
It is essential for the issuing of an FPN that the authorised officer collects adequate evidence to support any legal proceedings if the notice is returned unpaid.
The FPN must contain the following information:
The notice will clearly state that by opting to pay the fixed penalty, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will take no legal action for the prescribed offence.
When an FPN has been issued, the alleged offender has 14 days within which to make the full payment amount or pay a discounted amount within 7 days.
After 14 days if an FPN has not been paid, the alleged offender will be sent a reminder letter.
This letter will state the terms of the penalty payment, and the payment deadline. If it remains unpaid for a period of 14 days after the payment deadline has passed, a file will be put together, and court proceedings will be issued. Unpaid penalties will be followed up by prosecutions through the courts.
In certain cases, prosecution through the courts may be the most appropriate course of action, or where other enforcement actions have had no effect. Prosecution will likely follow when:
An FPN issued to an alleged offender is unpaid following the 14-day payment period and a reminder.
Where prosecution through the courts is appropriate, a full case file will be prepared by the Enforcement Officer and then reviewed and signed off by the Enforcement Team Leader before being passed to the Dorset Council Legal Department for further scrutiny and to progress for prosecution if it is within the public interest.
Evidence is key to the enforcement procedure. The recording and storage of this evidence must be carried out in a concise and consistent manner to ensure its admissibility in Court.
Evidence collected by authorised officers will come in various forms, from various sources and, dependant on its quality, could be used in a variety of enforcement actions.
Evidence that is obtained by an authorised officer ‘in the field’ will be recorded in a timely manner in ink in a PACE notebook. All entries must be clear and precise.
Evidence must be in the form of:
Addressed documents
Evidence gathered in relation to an offence, can come in the form of an addressed document, which may relate to the person believed to have committed the offence (e.g., when household waste is found to be fly tipped, an authorised officer will search the waste for any documentation which may relate to the person responsible).
Witness statements
Where an authorised officer has witnessed an offence occurring, that officer will have to produce a witness statement.
If a member of the public has witnessed an offence, in order for the evidence to be of value, they must be willing to attend court to give evidence, if that becomes necessary. Any statement made by a witness must be signed and dated by the witness and witnessed by the authorised officer at the time of taking the statement.
Statements will be recorded on an MG11 witness statement.
Interviewing
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) Codes of Practice require any person interviewed regarding his involvement or suspected involvement in an offence must be under caution, otherwise the evidence will be inadmissible in court.
This caution must be carried out before any questions are put to him regarding the offence. PACE interviews will only be undertaken by authorised trained officers.
No juvenile (a person aged under 18) or mentally impaired person should be interviewed without an appropriate adult being present.
As a last resort, it may be necessary to try to interview the suspect by way of correspondence. In this way it will be possible to write to the suspect under caution asking them relevant questions and giving them a time by which to reply.
In determining the sufficiency of evidence, consideration should be given to the following factors regarding the credibility of witnesses:
Where the case depends in part on admissions or confessions, consideration should be made to their admissibility and whether interviews, statements and other evidence have been obtained in compliance with relevant legislation.
In determining the admissibility of evidence, regard should be given to the requirements of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996 and associated Codes of Practice.
Paragraph 4 of the Controlled Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 can be used to impose a collection charge to cover the cost of collecting side waste and contaminated waste if the authority has already served a section 46 notice in relation to this issue.
Any charges under this paragraph are not intended to be penal – they simply allow the authority to cover the cost of collecting waste which falls outside their usual service.
Authorised officers have the power to require the name and address of a person who they believe has committed an offence.
To avoid serving enforcement action using false details, the authorised officer will use all reasonable methods to confirm the details supplied by an alleged offender. The initial method of confirmation will be through the Electoral Services Officer, where personal details can be checked against the electoral roll (but this will not include juveniles).
Failing to supply personal details or giving a false name and address to an authorised officer is an offence and carries a fine of £1,000 upon conviction. If a person fails to provide an authorised officer with personal details, the officer will take all reasonable steps to obtain information on that person.
Where a written warning has been issued on a previous occasion, and a further offence is committed on a separate occasion, no further informal warnings will be issued. The next course of action will be to consider the use of an FPN, simple caution or prosecution.
Where a simple caution has been previously issued and a further offence is committed, no further cautions will be issued. In these cases, consideration will be given to either the use of an FPN or prosecution.
A person may be issued with up to three FPNs in total. If a further offence is committed on a fourth separate occasion, no further penalty notices will be served upon that person and court proceedings will be instigated.
Fixed penalties are issued in lieu of prosecution. A valid fixed penalty therefore cannot be issued to a child under 10, as they are below the age of criminal responsibility, however contact should be made with the child’s parents or legal guardian to make them aware of the offence.
Fixed penalties may be issued to young people between the ages of 10 to 17. Different considerations apply to juveniles aged 10-15, and those aged 16-17.
For offenders between 10 and 15 years old, an FPN should not normally be issued. If, on enquiry, it is found that an FPN is suitable, then the notice should be issued to the offender with an appropriate adult being present. If the fixed penalty must be issued by post, the alleged offender’s parent or legal guardian should be notified at the same time.
For offenders aged 16 or 17 years old, an FPN can be issued. Enforcement Officers should obtain all of the following details, the name, address, age, and date of birth of the suspected offender, together with the name and address of his or her parent or legal guardian.
The young offender should be informed that this information will be shared with their local youth offending team.
If it is necessary to interview a young person under 18 under caution, an appropriate adult must be present.
Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team has the power to take enforcement action against persons that commit a variety of environmental crimes. The following are the core offences covered by these procedures:
Under the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978, a person commits an offence if, without lawful authority, abandons on any land in the open air, or on any land forming part of a highway, a motor vehicle or anything that has formed part of a motor vehicle.
There is no legal definition of an abandoned vehicle. Authorised officers must use their discretion when forming decisions on abandonment using guidance issued by DEFRA.
Authorised officers will be able to arrange for the removal of a vehicle from a highway or public land.
Abandoned vehicles will be investigated if a motor vehicle or anything that has formed part of a motor vehicle is in the open air on any land or land forming part of a highway in such circumstances may reasonably be assumed to be abandoned including those vehicles that are a detriment to the environment i.e., it is vandalised or damaged.
Abandoned vehicles on private land can be removed at the request of the landowner or occupier. If the vehicle is on private land, we require a request for removal from the landowner and a copy of the land registry deeds, clearly showing the red curtilage line of ownership.
If found guilty of abandoning a vehicle on a highway or on land in the open air, a person can be fined up to £2,500, or a term of not exceeding three months imprisonment, or both. In lieu of prosecution, the Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will issue an FPN of £200, reduced to £150 if paid within the first 7 days.
Check the abandoned vehicle registration number on the .gov website to ascertain tax status.
Dorset Council have been granted devolved powers from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and they are entitled to remove untaxed vehicles from the highway in accordance with the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 and related regulations.
6.2.1 Applicable legislation and guidance:
6.2.2 Vehicles that can be clamped and removed
Example: A vehicle’s tax runs out on 1st January 2019 – Enforcement action may be taken on or after the 2nd of March 2019.
6.2.3 This policy does not apply to vehicles that are:
The burden of proof for all land issues lies with Dorset Council Environmental Enforcement Team.
6.2.4 Wheelclamping procedures
Enforcement action must be taken within 30 minutes of checking the tax status of the vehicle with the wheel-clamping section at DVLA directly by phone 0300 300 1496 (Option 2) They will authorise enforcement action or advise if a vehicle is not applicable for enforcement. (See 6.2.2 for vehicles that can be removed):
On return to the office complete and send the Wheelclamping Case Update Form to:
If the release fees are not paid, then recovery of the vehicle should be requested after 24 hours of clamping. A lift request will be sent to Matt@wsrecycling.co.uk Prior to recovery/impounded the recovery agent must physically check the vehicle against the vehicle condition report and take photographs of the vehicle in situ. The recovery agent must evaluate all vehicles impounded as follows:
Until the vehicle is authorised for disposal by DVLA (timeframes specified in 6.2.2), the recovery agent does not have authority to access the vehicle. The keeper is the only person entitled to remove personal items. The keeper will need to provide documentation as required to release the vehicle and sign the Vehicle Content Removal form to confirm what possessions they have taken.
The Enforcement Team must deal with all telephone calls from the public in relation to enforcement action e.g., land issues and payment of fees.
6.2.7 Fees:
Within 24 hours of offence - £100
Release from pound 24 hours or more after offence. £200
W&S is responsible for ensuring that all notifications of scrapping or certificates of destruction are submitted to DVLA within 4 weeks of disposal. It is assumed that all disposals by scrapping comply with current legislation.
If the keeper wishes to disclaim all rights of ownership, they must complete and sign a Vehicle Disclaimer Declaration form CLE1206. Completed forms should be emailed to:
wheelclamping@dvla.gsi.gov.uk.
If Dorset Council wishes to auction the vehicle a request must be submitted to the DVLA via email: wheelclampingcauseupdates@dvla.gsi.gov.uk within seven days of receiving disposal authorisation. AUCTION REQUEST must be placed in the subject field.
6.2.10 Report of untaxed vehicle received:
6.2.11 Instant removal of untaxed vehicle
Dorset Council reserves the right to conduct an instant removal of a vehicle which satisfies the criteria outlined in 6.2.2 and such a decision will be made on a case-by-case basis. Instant
Removal operations may be undertaken in circumstances such as, but not limited to problematic repeat offenders and partnership working with agencies such as the Police, DVLA and or the Environment Agency.
A decision to instantly lift an eligible vehicle does not in any way affect the fees (as specified in 6.2.7), owed to Dorset Council.
The Environment Protection Act 1990 (EPA 1990) makes it an offence to deposit controlled waste, or knowingly cause or knowingly permit controlled waste, to be deposited in or on any land unless a waste management licence authorising the deposit is in force and/or the defence of an offender states that they are acting under his employer’s instructions.
The powers to deal with fly tipping incidents are shared between local authorities and the Environment Agency. The national fly tipping protocol (agreed between the Environment Agency and LGA) gives guidance on which authority should take the lead in dealing with fly tips dependant on their size, composition, and location.
Local councils have the discretion to choose whether to investigate such incidents on private land but have no obligation to clear fly-tipped waste. Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will endeavour to investigate fly tipping incidents on private land where resources permit, and the severity warrants investigation.
Where there is evidence that a landowner is ‘knowingly permitting’ unlawful waste activities on their land by failing to address them, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team may serve and enforce a notice under section 59 of the Environment Protection Act 1990 requiring the occupier of the land to remove material fly-tipped and/or reduce the consequences of the deposit of that fly-tipped material, i.e., secure the site.
Under section 59, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team may remove fly-tipped material and can seek to recover the necessary costs of doing so from the occupier of the land or any person who deposited, knowingly caused, or knowingly permitted the deposit of the controlled waste.
The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 applies a penalty for a person found guilty of a fly tipping offence to be a fine of up to £50,000- or 12-months imprisonment if convicted in a Magistrates Court. If convicted in a Crown Court, it is an unlimited fine, or a term not exceeding 5 years imprisonment for both hazardous and non-hazardous waste offences.
In lieu of prosecution for a fly tipping offence, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team can give an alleged offender the opportunity to pay an FPN of £400, reduced to £200 if paid within the first 7 days.
This information can then be used to try and identify the offenders.
Under the Control of Waste (Dealing with Seized Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team can seize any vehicle, trailer or mobile plant and their contents if they have reasonable grounds to believe it is being or will be used in the waste crimes.
The Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will seize a vehicle if they suspect it is:
The procedure as quoted in the .Gov website will be followed (Local authorities: seizing vehicles for suspected waste crime).
The Environment Protection Act 1990 (EPA 1990) section 87 makes it illegal to drop litter.
This relates to places in the open air to which the public are entitled or permitted to have access without payment, including any covered place open to the air on at least one side and to which the public has access.
The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 (CNEA 2005) extends the scope of that offence so that it becomes an offence to drop litter anywhere in the open air (including rivers and lakes) regardless of ownership, except in locations where the public does not have access, or the owner of the land has given permission for the dropping of litter, or a legal authorisation exists to do so.
The term litter refers to any discarded item/s that leads to the defacement of the area, including food and drink containers, sweet papers, cigarette ends, chewing gum etc. The absence of a litter bin is not an excuse to drop litter. There is usually a litter bin within a reasonable walking distance and people have the option to take it home.
If found guilty of a litter offence under this legislation, the offender can be fined up to £2,500, or a term of not exceeding three months imprisonment, or both. In lieu of prosecution for a litter offence, Dorset Council’s Waste Enforcement Team can issue an FPN of £100 reduced to £75 if paid within the first 7 days.
Littering from vehicles can be dealt with using the Littering from Vehicles outside London (Keepers: Civil Penalties) Regulations 2018. These regulations allow a civil penalty charge notice to be issued to the keeper of the vehicle from which litter is thrown. This removes the need to identify precisely who threw the litter before taking enforcement action.
Under these regulations, the penalty can be levied between £50 - £150, with a default level set at £100. The civil penalty charge must be at the same level as the fixed penalty charge for littering. Therefore, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will issue a civil penalty charge of £100, reduced to £75 if paid within 14 days. If the civil penalty is not paid within the 28-day payment period the fine level liable will double.
Any income from these civil penalties will only be used for functions relating to litter and refuse.
Evidence will be gathered to be able to issue a civil penalty notice. This will include but not limited to:
the circumstances alleged to constitute the littering offence, including the registration mark (if known) of the vehicle concerned
the make of vehicle, model, and colour
the opening from which the litter was thrown (e.g., driver’s side window)
The Community Protection Notice is intended to deal with unreasonable, on-going problems or nuisances which negatively affect the community’s quality of life by targeting the person responsible (Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014) (section 43(1)).
The notice can direct any individual over the age of 16, business or organisation responsible to stop causing the problem and it could also require the person responsible to take reasonable steps to ensure that it does not occur again (section 43(3)).
An authorised person may issue a community protection notice to an individual aged 16 or over, or a body, if satisfied on reasonable grounds that (i) the conduct of the individual or body is having a detrimental effect, of a persistent or continuing nature, on the quality of life of those in the locality; and (ii) the conduct is unreasonable.
A community protection notice may be issued by a constable, the relevant local authority, or a person designated by the relevant local authority for the purposes of this section.
A community protection notice imposes any of the following requirements on the individual or body issued with it:
A person issued with a community protection notice who fails to comply with it commits an offence. Breach of any requirement in the notice, without reasonable excuse, would be a criminal offence, subject to a fixed penalty notice (which attracts a penalty of £100) (section 52) or prosecution.
On summary conviction, an individual would be liable to a level 4 fine (currently up to £2,500). An organisation such as a company is liable to a fine not exceeding £20,000.
Sections 34 and 47 of the Environment Protection Act 1990 (EPA 1990) places a 'Duty of Care' on all producers of business waste to ensure all such waste is stored and disposed of in a proper and safe manner.
Waste must be passed on to an authorised person and the producer must retain a waste transfer note that sets out certain details of the waste. These waste transfer notes must be kept for two years.
Under the EPA 1990, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team can request to see evidence of a waste collection from a licensed waste disposal company (i.e., Waste Transfer Notes).
Regulation 35 of the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011 imposes requirements in relation to the retention and furnishing of the waste transfer notes.
Regulation 35(6) states that the transferor and the transferee must keep the written information, or a copy of it, for at least 2 years and produce it to an officer of the appropriate body or of a waste collection authority on demand within 7 days.
If a person is not able to produce the relevant waste disposal documents, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team will allow that person 7 days within which to produce the documentation.
Failure to produce any documentation after 7 days can result in a fixed penalty fine of £300 (reduced to £180 for early payment) or prosecution where the maximum fine is unlimited. The maximum fine for illegally dumping waste is unlimited and/or a term of imprisonment not exceeding five years.
If a complaint/report of suspected non-compliance is reported to enforcement, then the following process should be followed:
Section 34 (2A) of the Environment Protection Act 1990 also places a ‘Duty of Care’ on householders to ensure they reasonable steps to check that people removing waste from their premises are authorised and licensed to do so.
As with the commercial checks, Dorset Council’s Environmental Enforcement Team can request to see evidence of a waste collection from a licensed waste disposal company (i.e., Waste Transfer Notes). A breach of the household duty of care would attract an unlimited fine if convicted.
Section 5 of the Control of Pollution Act 1989 states that a waste carriers’ licence is required if a person:
Failure to produce documentation after 5 days can result in a fixed penalty fine of £200 (reduced to £120 for early payment) or prosecution where the maximum fine is unlimited.
An FPN will be given when an individual appears to have failed to comply with their duty of care under section 34(2A) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 in England. For example:
If fly-tipped waste is traced to an individual and they are unable to identify who took their waste, or the carrier they identify is unauthorized, then it is reasonable to believe their duty of care was not met.
Information regarding enforcement cases will kept in secure electronic folders and any hard copies will be kept in a locked cabinet in a secure room.
Cases that result in an enforcement action will be kept for a maximum of 5 years.
Where an investigation does not result in an enforcement action, the record will be for 3 years.
This policy was last reviewed in 2023.
The next expected review date is 2026.
