A Herefordshire businessman has been handed a suspended prison sentence for illegally disposing of human waste from his portable toilet hire company. Neil Griffiths, 56, from Colwall, who operated as Three Counties Toilet Hire, appeared at Worcester Crown Court where he received an eight-month jail term, suspended for 12 months.
The investigation into Griffiths began in July 2023 after members of the public reported seeing blue chemical toilet waste being discharged from one of his vehicles on the A449 at Much Marcle. Herefordshire Council officers swiftly attended the scene, where they found clear evidence of human waste, toilet tissue, and chemical residue, with the waste observed entering a roadside drain.
Following this discovery, officers traced the vehicle back to Griffiths' business premises. There, they uncovered an unlicensed and unsecured cesspit, which emitted a strong odour of human excrement. Subsequent testing of the waste found traces of DNA, providing crucial evidence that human waste from the business had been illegally disposed of at this location. It was also established that Griffiths had failed to produce adequate waste transfer records to demonstrate legal disposal of waste generated over an extended period.
Griffiths pleaded guilty to two counts of illegally depositing controlled waste, one charge of depositing land without an environmental permit, and one offence of handling waste without taking reasonable measures. In addition to the suspended sentence, he was ordered to complete 300 hours of unpaid work and pay Herefordshire Council's full prosecution costs, totalling £8,290.
Charles Yarnold, Head of Public Protection at Herefordshire Council, emphasised the severity of the offences, stating that fly-tipping involving human waste has the potential to cause significant harm to both the environment and public health. He commended the complex investigation, which relied on public information and extensive work by council officers over several years, and reiterated the council's commitment to tackling environmental crime.