The Environment Agency and Angling Trust are running a pilot project, funded by the fishing licence, testing the benefits of giving members of Voluntary Bailiff Service powers to make fishing licence and byelaw checks. If successful, the initiative’s expansion would allow Environment Agency fisheries officers to focus on investigations into other types of fisheries crime.

In the first phase of the project, the Angling Trust recruited over 300 volunteers across England to help Environment Agency fisheries officers by providing information and reporting suspicious incidents on riverbanks and lakes.

In the second phase, the pilot project has now trained 10 of the Voluntary Bailiff Service members from the south east to undertake fishing licence and byelaw compliance checking patrols, reporting offenders in the same way that Environment Agency enforcement officers do.

Judy Proctor, head of fisheries at the Environment Agency said:

The volunteer bailiffs already provide a great service to angling by helping our officers catch people fishing illegally. We will be evaluating the pilot carefully to see what more can be done and how we can improve the service.

There is no excuse for illegal fishing. A fishing licence costs from just £30 for a whole year and you can get one on GOV.UK. Anyone fishing illegally can expect to be prosecuted and face a fine of up to £2,500 and up to £50,000 for byelaw offences. In 2015/16, the Environment Agency’s patrols checked 62,076 rod licences and brought 2,043 successful prosecutions for fisheries crime.

The Voluntary Bailiff Service recently inducted a further 35 new Phase 1 recruits in the North East and is currently recruiting in the rest of England. Induction and training days are being held this spring and anyone expressing an interest in joining the VBS should email karen.sarkar@anglingtrust.net

The Environment Agency’s flagship Lincshore scheme involves dredging sand from the seabed and pumping it onto the beach, replacing levels lost to the sea during the winter.

This reduces the risk of waves reaching and overtopping the main sea defences, protecting them from damage and erosion.

This year, the £6.8m project will begin Monday, 24 April at Boygrift. Over the next 6 weeks, beaches at Trusthorpe, Mablethorpe, Ingoldmells, Trunch Lane, Wolla Bank, Chapel Six Marshes and Huttoft will be replenished.

Mark Robinson, senior coastal advisor at the Environment Agency, said:

The beaches take the brunt of the waves’ energy, which would otherwise impact on coastal defences such as sea walls. Storms and large waves are more frequent during winter months, leading to erosion of the sand from these beaches.

” Replacing the sand helps extend the life of the sea defences – defences that reduce coastal flood risk to more than 30,000 homes and businesses, 19,000 static caravans and 35,000 hectares of land.

Additionally there’s an amenity value, benefitting and encouraging tourism on the coast, as otherwise there would be very little sand on our beaches.

Mark added:

We time our works to minimise disruption to local communities and visitors, but unfortunately we will need to close off sections of beach while we’re working on them to keep people safe.

This work is important to maintain coastal flood defences, so we appreciate residents’ ongoing patience if there’s minor disruption.

This year, around 350,000m3 of sand will be dredged from designated areas 20km offshore. The dredger used will be the HAM316, which carries about 10,000 tonnes of sand at a time. Additionally, the equipment used to move sand on the beach has the lowest carbon footprint of its class.

Lincshore first began in 1994 and covers 20km of beach frontage between Skegness and Mablethorpe.

The Environment Agency is currently reviewing how coastal flood risk will continue to be managed in the future and will be seeking the views of local communities, businesses and partners to help shape this.

While Lincshore helps maintain an excellent standard of protection from flooding, those living and working in coastal communities should take steps to ensure they know what to do in an emergency – such as knowing your risk, making a plan, and signing up for our free flood warnings. To find out more, call 0345 988 1188 or visit our website.

Four boaters who did not register their vessels have been landed with penalties totalling almost £4,000.

It’s after river inspectors found 6 boats without registration plates moored on the Nene in Northamptonshire, part of the Environment Agency’s Anglian Waterways network. Three of the vessels were owned by just one offender.

It is a legal requirement for boat owners to register any vessel they keep, use or let for hire on Environment Agency waterways, and to clearly display a valid registration plate. None of the 4 boat owners had done so.

Andrew MacGilliuray of Kestrel Lane in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, Jim Brown of Station Road in Ringstead, Northamptonshire, Steve Caines of Abbey Road in Lancing, West Sussex, and Raymond Davis of Friars Avenue, Northampton, all failed to register their vessels as required by law.

Their cases were heard at Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 28 March, and resulted in fines and costs totalling £3,927.23. Mr MacGilliuray, who owned 3 of the 6 boats, was ordered to pay a total of £1,357.96, Mr Brown £1,112.29, Mr Caines £838, and Mr Davis £628.98.

Nathan Arnold, Partnerships and Development team leader at the Environment Agency, said:

Our historic and precious waterways are an important part of our nation’s heritage and are enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of people every year.

A significant part of caring for them, protecting them, and ensuring people continue to enjoy them is funded by boaters paying their way. Those who don’t contribute as they should are threatening the future of our waterways – and we won’t hesitate to take action against them.

As well as not contributing to the upkeep of waterways, unregistered boats can be unsafe, hazardous to other river users, and a pollution risk to the local environment and wildlife.

The Environment Agency looks after 353 miles of navigable waterways in the Anglian network, which includes the Ancholme, Black Sluice, Glen, Welland, Nene, Great Ouse and Stour, as well as associated locks and navigation facilities like moorings, showers and toilets.

More information about boating and waterways, including registering vessels, is available at www.gov.uk/ea. If you suspect a boat is illegal, please contact the Environment Agency on 03708 506 506 or email our waterways team (mailto:waterways.enforcementanglian@environment-agency.gov.uk).

ENDS

Notes to editors:

• Andrew MacGilliuary of Kestrel Lane, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, pleaded guilty and was fined £960.96. He was also ordered to pay costs of £300 and a victim surcharge of £97. The total penalty was £1,357.96. He kept three unregistered vessels, namely Dee Jay, Big Dee II and Barbara Lee, on the River Nene at Willy Watt Marina, Northamptonshire.

• Jim Brown of Station Road, Ringstead, Northamptonshire, pleaded guilty and was fined £783.29. He was also ordered to pay costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £79. The total penalty was £1,112.29. His vessel, called Tee Hee III, was found on the River Nene at Blackthorn Lake Marina.

• Steve Caines of Abbey Road, Lancing, West Sussex, was proved guilty in absence and fined £535. He was also ordered to pay costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £53. The total penalty was £838. His vessel, called Sunflower, was found on the River Nene at Willy Watt Marina.

• Raymond Davis of Friars Avenue, Northampton, Northamptonshire, pleaded guilty by post and was fine £343.98. He was also ordered to pay costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £35. The total penalty was £628.98. His vessel, called Galton, was found on the River Nene at Northampton Marina.

Boat owners are being urged to make sure their vessels are properly registered – or face paying thousands of pounds in penalties.

The call comes after inspectors found 4 boats moored without their registration plates on the river Great Ouse. The rivers are part of the Anglian Waterways network managed by the Environment Agency.

The discovery resulted in the vessels’ owners being prosecuted and ordered to forfeit almost £2,500 between them.

It is a legal requirement for boaters to register any craft they keep, use, or let for hire on Environment Agency waterways, and to clearly display a valid registration plate.

Howard Kirtley of Barkers Lane in Bedford, James O’Brian of Church Road in Hitchin, Stephen Jaskolski of Ridgehill in Hereford, and William Warnock of School Lane in Buckden, all failed to register their vessels as required by law.

Their cases were heard at Luton Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday 4 April, and resulted in fines and costs totalling £2,445. Mr Kirtley was ordered to pay a total penalty of £635, Mr O’Brian £855, Mr Jaskolski £635, and Mr Warnock £465.

Nathan Arnold, Partnerships and Development team leader at the Environment Agency, said:

Our historic and precious waterways are an important part of our nation’s heritage and are enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of people every year,” says

A significant part of caring for them, protecting them, and ensuring people continue to enjoy them is funded by boaters paying their way. Those who don’t contribute as they should are threatening the future of our waterways – and we won’t hesitate to take action against them.

As well as not contributing to the upkeep of waterways, unregistered boats can be unsafe, hazardous to other river users, and a pollution risk to the local environment and wildlife.

The Environment Agency looks after 353 miles of navigable waterways in the Anglian network, which includes the Ancholme, Black Sluice, Glen, Welland, Nene, Great Ouse and Stour, as well as associated locks and navigation facilities like moorings, showers and toilets.

More information about boating and waterways, including registering vessels, is available at www.gov.uk/ea. If you suspect a boat is illegal, please contact the Environment Agency on 03708 506 506 or email our waterways team.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

• Howard Kirtley of Barkers Lane, Bedford, pleaded guilty by post and was fined £350. He was also ordered to pay costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £35. The total penalty was £635. His vessel, called Roovin Moon, was found on the Great Ouse at Priory Marina, Bedford.

• James O’Brian of Church Road, Hitchin, was proved guilty in absence and was fined £550. He was also ordered to pay costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £55. The total penalty was £855. His vessel, called Happy Days, was found on the Great Ouse at Kelpie Marina, Bedford.

• Stephen Jaskolski of Ridgehill, Hereford, was pleaded guilty by post and fined £350. He was also ordered to pay costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £35. The total penalty was £635. His vessel, called Isadora, was found on the Great Ouse at Priory Marina, Bedford.

• William Warnock of School Lane, Buckden, pleaded guilty and was fined £195. He was also ordered to pay costs of £250 and a victim surcharge of £20. The total penalty was £465. His vessel, called Happy H, was found on the Great Ouse at Priory Marina, Bedford.

Yesterday, Nessa Anne Thompson, of Thompson Waste Recycling Ltd was sentenced at Hull Crown Court in relation to two charges relating to waste site operations in Scunthorpe. This followed as a result of the defendant pleading guilty to both offences.

Ms Thompson from Scotter Road, Scunthorpe was sentenced to a total of 6 months in custody. She was also disqualified from being a director for a period of 7 years.

The charges were brought by the Environment Agency contrary to section 33(1)(c) and section 157(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and one contrary to Regulation 12(1)(a) and Regulation 41(1) of the Environmental Permitting (England & Wales) Regulations 2010.

Ms Thompson operated an illegal waste operation for the company that had previously held a permit until it went into administration before liquidation. The permit at this point was formally disclaimed.

The site at Winterton Road in Scunthorpe continued to be used and waste was stored in large quantities and in such a manner that it presented a human health and fire risk.

When the site did catch fire on 6 May 2014, firefighters attending the scene were even advised not to re-use the firewater due to the risk of waterborne diseases linked to the number of rats on site.

As a result of inadequate fire breaks at the site efforts to prevent the spread of fire was hampered, causing a greater impact to the adjacent businesses and the wider community.

Speaking after the case, an Environment Agency officer involved with the investigation said:

This site posed a risk to property, the local environment, and people’s health because our advice was ignored.

This prosecution demonstrates that we take cases such as this very seriously and will not hesitate to prosecute if necessary, to protect the environment and local communities.

In mitigation, the court heard that the defendant had pleaded guilty to both offences and she was given credit for that. It also heard that her partner was in poor health and that they were both suffering from significant financial hardship.

In passing sentence, the judge said there had been a deliberate flouting of environmental regulations by the defendant. He commented that as the Technically Competent Manager for the site, she would have been well aware that there was no permit in place at the site. He found that there had been attempts to conceal the illegal activity. The judge noted that Ms Thompson has previous convictions for breaches of environmental legislation, for which she was under investigation at the time the current offences were committed. He said that this amounted to a significant aggravating feature.

-ends-

Notes to Editors

Charges

Count 1

PERMITTING THE TREATING, KEEPING OR DISPOSING OF CONTROLLED WASTE IN A MANNER LIKELY TO CAUSE POLLUTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT OR HARM TO HUMAN HEALTH contrary to Section 33(1)(c) and Section 157(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990

NESSA ANNE THOMPSON as director of Thompson Waste Recycling Ltd, on or before 6 May 2014 Thompson Waste Recycling Ltd Thompson Yard, Winterton Road, Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, DN15 0DH, did treat, keep or dispose of controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution to the environment or harm to human health on land at Winterton Road, Scunthorpe, DN15 0DH, namely mixed waste that was being brought onto the site, processed and stored in a manner which posed a fire risk and which did result in two fires on site, and the said offence was committed with your consent, connivance, or attributable to your neglect, as director.

Count 2

PERMITTING THE OPERATION OF A REGULATED FACILITY WITHOUT AN ENVIRONMENTAL PERMIT contrary to Regulation 12(1)(a) and Regulation 38(1)(a) and Regulation 41(1)(a) and (b) of the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2010

NESSA ANNE THOMPSON, as director of Thompson Waste Recycling Ltd, between 18 March 2014 and 13 August 2014 Thompson Waste Recycling Ltd of Thompson Yard, Winterton Road, Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, DN15 0DH, operated a regulated facility, which was not authorised by a permit, namely a non-exempt waste operation, on land at Winterton Road, Scunthorpe, DN15 0DH, involving the deposit and processing of waste at the site and the said offence was committed with your consent, connivance, or attributable to your neglect, as director.