Man given £480 bill for cleaning river

A volunteer who hauled 120 tyres out of a polluted river has been told to pay £480 to get rid of them.

Both council and environmental officers have refused to accept responsibility for the rubbish. And Roy Hart, 63, was told it will cost him £4 for each one to be legally disposed off.

Farmer Roy, a keen angler, and three volunteers acted after seeing dead fish in the polluted River Crouch at a park in Wickford, Essex. He got permission to act from the Environment Agency and Basildon Council.



But afterwards Agency officials said the tyres were the responsibility of the land owner - the council.

But the council argued it was a "pollution control" matter for the Agency. Mr Hart, a parish councillor, now has a mountain of tyres outside his home in Battlesbridge. He said: "I'm being punished for showing community spirit."

Agency chief Peter Rickett claimed Mr Hart did not ensure the council would take the rubbish. He added: "We are only responsible for clearing rivers if there is a flood risk."