A DORSET resident has been prosecuted for failing to produce evidence of how their commercial waste was being dealt with.

Steven Moore, 47, director of Aztek Travel Ltd (trading as Dorset Cars) pleaded guilty at Weymouth Magistrates’ Court on Monday, September 3 to the offence of Failure to Produce a Waste Transfer Note contrary to section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

In February 2018, Dorset Waste Partnership (DWP) enforcement officers requested that Mr. Moore produce waste transfer notes to demonstrate how Dorset Cars was dealing with waste generated during business at their Dorchester premises.

However, these requests were ignored.

A waste transfer note is a document that describes the waste being transferred, who it’s being taken from and handed to, and where it’s going.

Two weeks later, the DWP issued a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) to Mr. Moore with a further 14-day reminder.

When no payment was forthcoming and all correspondence was ignored, the DWP asked Dorset County Council’s Legal team to act and bring the case to court.

Mr. Moore, having taken legal advice, chose to plead guilty and was criminally convicted.

Aztec Travel Ltd was also convicted.

The company was ordered to pay a £300 fine, £30 victim surcharge and £950 in costs.

It was claimed that Dorset Cars produced ‘very little office waste’ however DWP enforcement officers observed two 3ft tall bins on Mr. Moore’s commercial premises and Dorset Cars staff did not know where this waste went.

It cannot be confirmed what happened to the waste itself, which the DWP says highlights the risk of not having waste transfer notes as there was no trail of where Mr. Moore’s waste had ended up.

While Dorset Cars now has a commercial collection for their waste, having such arrangements in place previously would have been a considerably cheaper option than the subsequent court costs and fine.

A spokesman for the Dorset Waste Partnership, said: “While we are obviously pleased about the verdict, all of this could have been avoided if the business had a commercial waste collection service in place, which would have also enabled Mr. Moore to produce the waste transfer notes we require when making our checks.

"If your business (including holiday lets) produces any amount of waste, you need to have a commercial waste collection in place.

"If you pay someone to take your rubbish away, you need to be able to prove who took it and where it’s going, so make sure you get a waste transfer note. "It’s also worth noting that the DWP takes the issuing and non-payment of FPN’s extremely seriously. Failure to pay an FPN will result in further legal action being taken.”

Business owners can find out more about their duty of care regarding their waste at www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/recyclingforbusiness