Waste boss awaits sentence
Page 7
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
THE BOSS of North Wales haulier Gwynedd Skip Hire is awaiting sentence after he allowed untreated waste material to be spread on farmland.
In a prosecution brought by the Environment Agency, Caernarfon Crown Court was told how William O’Grady, of Caeathro near Caernarfon, persuaded a local farmer to spread waste onto fields to improve the soil on his farm.
What arrived was up to 70 tonnes of treated and untreated wood, plastic, rubber and paper, which was spread over an area of up to 16 acres.
In this case much of the material had been ploughed into the soil before agency officers arrived to stop the work, meaning that pollutants will remain in the soil for years.
The jury found O’Grady guilty on all five charges. Judge Niclas Parry said O’Grady had failed the waste management industry and told him to prepare for a custodial sentence. O’Grady is due to be sentenced on 20 December.
In August, another company also run by O'Grady – WM O’Grady Haulage and Plant Hire – went into administration.
Gwynedd Skip Hire has also withdrawn its application for a new O-licence.