Council succeeds in prosecution of resident over dog fouling in his garden

A council in Essex has successfully prosecuted a resident after accumulations of dog fouling in his garden caused an odour nuisance and provoked a string of complaints.

Castle Point Borough Council’s Environmental Health Service brought the prosecution against Craig Wood of Catherine Road in Benfleet. on five counts of breaching an abatement notice served under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

Further complaints were received despite the warnings in the notice.

At Basildon Magistrates Court earlier this month (18 February) Wood pleaded guilty to five breaches of the notice.

He was fined a total of £1,485 for the breaches and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £31. Full costs of £1,289.75 were awarded to the council.

Castle Point said the notice was served under section 79(1)(e) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

“Any accumulation or deposit which is prejudicial to health or a nuisance”

Where a local authority is satisfied that a statutory nuisance exists, or is likely to occur or recur, in the area of the authority, the local authority shall serve a notice (“an abatement notice”) imposing all or any of the following requirements—

requiring the abatement of the nuisance or prohibiting or restricting its occurrence or recurrence;

requiring the execution of such works, and the taking of such other steps, as may be necessary for any of those purposes,

and the notice shall specify the time or times within which the requirements of the notice are to be complied with.