North dumpers pay £150,000 in fines

Illegall dumpers paid out over £150,000 in fines in the North last year, new statistics revealed today.

Illegall dumpers paid out over £150,000 in fines in the North last year, new statistics revealed today.

Friends of the Earth has called for tougher penalties to combat the lucrative cross-border racketeering.

Tonnes of household waste from as far afield as Cork has been driven to remote parts of the North and abandoned, avoiding punitive landfill charges.

John Woods, director of Friends of the Earth Northern Ireland , said: "People are making money out of illegal dumping, being convicted in the courts and the fines are not matching the seriousness of the crime."

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The material can include rubble, household, hospital or controlled dangerous waste. A total of 112 people were found guilty and fined £158,150, a parliamentary answer to Ulster Unionist North Down MP Lady Sylvia Hermon revealed.

Craigavon, Ards, while border councils like Newry and Mourne and Fermanagh also experienced problems.

Mr Woods added: "I have heard of people who allow illegal dumping on their land being paid up to £100 a ton so there is a lot of money to be made. "You also have to bear in mind the long-term effect of the pollution on the land."

There were a total of 1,411 incidents of illegal dumping recorded last year, up on the last two years.