Company fined £30k for ignoring Croydon waste cleanup warnings for years

Lucy Williamson
·2-min read
-Credit: (Image: Environment Agency)
-Credit: (Image: Environment Agency)


A Wallington-based property company, Spark Properties Ltd, has been fined £30,000 for failing to clear illegal waste from a site in Croydon's retail park area, the Environment Agency reported on Friday.

The company was convicted at Croydon Magistrates Court for ignoring multiple warnings and an official enforcement notice to remove illegally dumped waste from 33 Imperial Way. The case stems from major waste dumping reported by Croydon Council in August 2022.

Environment Agency investigators attempted to work with Spark Properties Ltd for nearly a year, requesting a cleanup plan on 13 March 2023. After receiving no response, the agency served a formal enforcement notice on 31 March 2023, giving the company two months to clear the site.

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By 16 June 2023, with no progress made, the Environment Agency pursued prosecution. Sentencing was heard at Croydon Magistrate Court on Friday 15 November 2024.

Matt Higginson, Environment Manager for the Environment Agency said “We are determined to ensure there is no space for waste crime and are pushing forward with our ‘Op Angola’ investigations and pursuing the criminals who deposited the waste at various locations in Croydon.

“However, landowners are responsible to clear up waste illegally deposited on their land. We tried to work with the company to give advice on how to get the land clear, but after many warnings, we had no alternative but to go down the enforcement route”.

In addition to the £30,000 fine, Spark Properties Ltd was ordered to pay £18,840.28 in costs and a £2,000 victim surcharge.

The Environment Agency encourages anyone suspecting waste crime to report it by calling 0800 807060.

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