Illegal waste wood recycling business in Devon fined £12,850

A landowner who allowed two men to set up an illegal waste wood recycling business in the Devon countryside has been ordered to pay a total of £12,850 in fines, costs and compensation at Exeter Crown Court.

The prosecution was brought by the Environment Agency.

In 2015 local businessman Anthony Joyner leased part of Cockwells Nursery near Totnes to Steven Loveridge and David Weeks who started a new business, Woody’s Recycling, at the site. Material arrived, but none ever left, resulting in a huge stockpile of waste wood, much of which was later destroyed in a massive fire.

Loveridge and Weeks, both directors of Woody’s Recycling, were sentenced earlier this year at separate hearings. Loveridge was responsible for the day-to-day operation of the business and Weeks acted as consultant and helped set up the new enterprise.

A court heard how the quantity of waste brought to the site, a disused plant nursery, far exceeded the amount allowed (1,000 tonnes) under the site’s waste exemption. Although the waste was mainly wood, other materials including mattresses, plasterboard, plastics and metal were also deposited at the nursery.