Dominic Allan, 30, of Old Swarland, Northumberland, received a 23‑week prison sentence suspended for 12 months at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court on Friday 19 December 2025 after admitting two offences of operating an illegal waste site. He must complete 16 days of rehabilitation activity, pay £3,154 in costs and clear the land by 30 June 2026 or return to court. The Environment Agency said he ignored repeated instructions to stop. Allan was previously jailed in August 2021 for related offences at the same location.

Agency officers first visited on 24 July 2024 after reports of activity. They found scrap vehicles, mixed household and garden waste, construction and demolition waste, and an area where material had been burned. Follow‑up inspections in August and October 2024 and March 2025 confirmed the site had not been cleared, with smoke observed and plasterboard present. Allan told officers he did not need a permit and claimed an associate stored vehicles there, yet social posts showed him offering waste collection and vehicle parts.

Open burning and poorly stored waste carry real health risks for nearby residents. Government guidance highlights that fine particulate matter from fires (PM2.5) harms lungs and other organs; current evidence indicates there is no safe level of exposure. Asthma + Lung UK also warns that smoke can trigger dangerous flare‑ups for people with lung conditions.

Inspectors also noted plasterboard among the waste. UK rules require gypsum‑based materials to be kept separate for reuse or recovery and not landfilled in cells that accept biodegradable waste - a basic safeguard that illegal sites ignore.

EA area environment manager Gary Wallace said Allan knew the activity was illegal and showed ‘blatant disregard for the law’, adding that permits exist to protect communities and the environment. Regulators say they will continue to bring waste crime cases to court.

This case lands amid a wider enforcement push. The Environment Agency’s 2025 supporting evidence estimates waste crime costs the economy about £1 billion a year, with the industry believing roughly 20% of all waste is illegally managed. At the end of March 2025, 451 illegal waste sites were active and 749 new sites were identified in 2024–25, while a new Economic Crime Unit targets the money behind offending.

Public reporting helps stop sites before they scale up. New heatmaps show 16,773 reports of suspected waste crime across England during 2023 and 2024. If you see suspicious activity or waste burning, contact the Environment Agency’s 24‑hour incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60 or report anonymously via Crimestoppers.

For households, the most effective prevention is choosing reputable services and keeping records. The regulator urges people to use only carriers on the Environment Agency public register and avoid cash‑in‑hand offers on social media that often end in fly‑tipping. If you suspect an unpermitted site, report it promptly so officers can intervene.

For small operators, compliance is straightforward compared with the cost of getting it wrong. Most waste activities require an environmental permit and clear duty‑of‑care arrangements; skirting those rules leads to enforcement notices, court action and criminal convictions - as this Northumberland case shows.