A DALTON man has been ordered to pay nearly £800 for dumping 14 bags of household waste on the side of a road at a South Lakeland beautyspot, SLDC has said.

The council prosecuted Matthew Baxter, 37, of Levens Close, after he committed the offence on the Kirkby Slate Road, which crosses Kirkby Moor, near Ulverston.

Baxter admitted breaching the Environmental Protection Act when he appeared before South Lakeland Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, said the authority.

He was fined £350 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £35, plus £392.60 of SLDC’s court costs. The costs and fines totalled £777.60.

The maximum fine for fly-tipping is £50,000.

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John Barwise, neighbourhood enforcement officer for SLDC, said he hoped the prosecution showed the council took fly-tipping seriously.

He said: “This man has dumped waste illegally in South Lakeland, in one of the most beautiful places in the country.

“People should not have to see waste of any kind that has been illegally dumped when they are out enjoying the countryside. Fly-tipping is a serious offence which represents a risk to humans and wildlife, as well as costing the taxpayer nationwide more than £44m every year.

“This man could easily have saved himself a lot of money and trouble by simply disposing of the rubbish legally at the proper facilities.

"We would ask anyone considering fly-tipping to think twice or risk facing a similar penalty themselves.”

Coun Sue Sanderson, SLDC's portfolio holder for Environment and People, said: “It cost the council more than £50,000 of council tax payers’ money last year to deal with fly-tipping.

“I am glad that we have been able to bring a successful prosecution which will go some way to redressing the balance, as well as hopefully deterring others.”

The Environment Agency database that records fly tipping nationally, FlyCapture, uses average costs to establish how much it costs local authorities to remove fly tipping.

According to FlyCapture, it cost South Lakeland District Council £30,346 last year to remove the 617 incidents of fly tipping that were reported. Investigations cost a further £21,285.

That means the average cost of each fly-tipping incident dealt with in South Lakeland is £83.68.