There is, sadly, money to be made by engaging in unauthorised waste handling and other forms of environmental crime. As a Court of Appeal ruling showed, however, perpetrators can expect to be stripped of their profits, and even imprisoned, when the law catches up with them.
The case concerned a farmer who, alongside his legitimate businesses, ran a large-scale waste operation without a permit. At least 25,000 cubic metres of waste was dumped on his land, representing many hundreds of lorry loads. Some of it was hazardous, creating a real risk of explosion. Waste was buried, spread about or burnt, causing a serious nuisance to his neighbours.
After he admitted six breaches of environmental regulations, he received a 26-month sentence of imprisonment. Following a further hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, a judge found that he had benefited from criminal conduct to the tune of £5,071,008. His available assets were valued at £2,102,208 and a confiscation order was made in that amount. In default of paying that sum, he was ordered to serve a further seven years’ imprisonment.
Ruling on his appeal against his sentence, the Court found that his benefit from crime had in some respects been miscalculated and reduced the relevant figure to just under £4 million. The amended figure, however, still far exceeded his available assets so that the amount of the confiscation order was unaffected.