A man has been fined after fly tipping asbestos rubbish and personal invoices.
Lee Anthony Cooke Stoddart, 32, of Osborne Terrace in Ferryhill, County Durham, was fined almost £2,000 after dumping waste containing asbestos near a cemetery.
The court heard that in October last year, the council received a report of an illegal fly-tip on land near Metal Bridge Cemetery.
The tip, which was primarily made up of building waste, contained asbestos cement, which meant it had to be removed by a specialist team.
The rubbish tipped near the field in County Durham
Durham County Council
Among the waste were invoices from Stoddart's business, KSD Roofing and Home Improvements.
He admitted the offence when interviewed later that month.
Stoddart attended Peterlee Magistrates' Court, where he pleaded guilty to dumping the waste, as well as two environmental offences relating to the use of a van.
He was fined £1,042 and ordered to pay £615 costs and a £246 victim surcharge.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
Stoddart appeared in Peterlee Magistrates' Court
Google Maps
Neighbourhood protection manager at Durham County Council Ian Hoult said: "Fly-tipping in itself is bad enough but to tip waste containing asbestos is reckless in the extreme and puts the public and our staff at risk.
"We will always take action against anyone dumping waste illegally, and appeal to the public to help us by reporting any incidents or intelligence to us so we can investigate and take the necessary action.
"Details such as the descriptions of the vehicles and people involved are a massive help to us in tracking down those responsible and we always appreciate the public's assistance in these matters."
It comes as new government figures revealed fly-tipping in England had to be cleaned up 1.08 million times by local councils in 2022-23.
This is despite the fact that clearing the largest illegal tips cost £13.2million, the number of court fines dropped by 17 per cent, raising just £785,000.
These figures only cover public land, however farmers have complained about criminals fly-tipping on their land.