A MUM has been left fuming after she was slapped with a £5,000 fine for putting the “wrong type of rubbish” in a public litter bin.
Natasha Sheldon Lane, 35, collected her parcel from a supermarket locker and put the plastic packaging in the park bin.
The mum is being held responsible for the contents of the entire bin
Natasha said she can’t afford to fight the council with a solicitor
The mum-of-two and full-time carer was shocked to then receive a summons in the post accusing her of “unlawful depositing of waste.”
The council inspectors tracked down Natasha after finding the package with her address on and blamed her for all the litter they found in the black bin.
Natasha said: “I’d have been better off throwing it on the floor. My only was being honest and law-abiding – placing the envelope in the bin and then admitting I’d done so.
“What’s happened is completely ridiculous. It’s causing unnecessary stress to someone who only tried to do the right thing.
“What’s worrying is that council staff are rifling through public bins in the hope of catching someone out. How much is this costing?
“The council is always complaining it has no yet it can afford to do this.”
The mum from North now faces prosecution from Flintshire council. The environmental enforcement team asked her to attend an “interview under caution” under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
The council said she could bring her own solicitor to fight the case. But Natasha, who is a full-time carer for her 13-year-old child with additional needs, said she can’t afford one.
“If I could afford a solicitor, I would be fighting this all the way.”
One officer admitted she was the fourth person to be investigated in a week. “He said he also has discretion to impose a £75 littering fine instead.”
The mum said: “I will probably have to accept the £75 littering fine as I can’t afford a fly-tipping charge. In this day and age, who can afford these kinds of spurious fines?
“It will have to come out of my carer’s allowance,” she added.
She said: “It’s really sad that people are being targeted who are only trying to do the right thing.
“I understand there are some items that shouldn’t be put in a public bin, like diabetic boxes containing used needles that should be returned to a chemist.
“But a non-recyclable plastic parcel wrapper? Where’s the common sense in that? The most annoying thing is that I live nearby and I can see this bin from my house.
“Every day I see older people sitting down nearby to read their letters – will they be targeted too?”
Natasha said she saw the parcel wrapper was labelled as non-recyclable for household bins.
She has since found out the wrapping could have been deposited at the supermarket in “soft plastics” containers.
Flintshire Council said it was “currently investigating this matter”.
Katie Wilby, chief officer for Streetscene and Transportation, said: “As it is an active , it is not appropriate to comment further at this stage.”
The Flintshire Council website states that it is an offence to dispose of household or waste in public litter bins, under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
“Public litter bins are provided only for waste produced when you’re out and about, and bagged dog waste.
“They should not be used for disposing of domestic or business waste. In town centres, these bins are emptied 2 to 3 times per day, and regularly in other areas.
“It is also a fly-tipping offence to leave any type of waste, including domestic and business waste, near a litter bin (e.g. black bin bag or shopping bag).
“If your waste is found to be dumped illegally, whether you know about it or not, you can be fined up to £5,000.”
The letter summoning Natasha to an interview under caution
Natasha said she should have ripped up the envelope with her name on 
