Court orders waste firm boss to pay £90,000

A WASTE firm boss has been ordered to pay £90,000 at a Proceeds of Crime hearing following breaches of environmental permitting legislation at two sites.

Gordon Pearson Anderson of Trefonen, is a former director of Paperback Collection & Recycling Limited, which is now in liquidation had previously pleaded guilty in March 2021 to an offence involving the illegal deposit and storage of 8,686 tonnes of plastic waste at Orthios Eco Park, Penrhos, Holyhead.

He had also pleaded guilty to offences involving non-compliance with the company’s environmental permit at its base at Deeside Industrial Park, Flintshire. The breaches concerned the excessive storage of waste material, failure to manage waste stacks and to implement fire breaks in accordance with waste fire prevention guidance.

At a Proceeds of Crime hearing at Caernarfon Crown Court on March 9, the court decided Mr Anderson had benefited from the criminal activity in the sum of £139,779.24, comprising of payments received in his capacity as director of the company.

The court decided Mr Anderson has available assets of £90,000 and a Confiscation Order was made for that sum to be paid within three months. If it is not paid, there shall be a period of imprisonment of 10 months.

At a previous sentencing hearing in August 2021, Mr Anderson was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, on three separate counts, to run concurrently.

He was also required to do 250 hours unpaid work and disqualified from acting as a company director for 15 years, reduced to 6 years on appeal in November 2022.