An illegal waste site on Rutland Road, Sheffield, has been fully cleared following a court case brought by the Environment Agency, according to a press release published on 24 August 2026. Mixed waste including fridges and electrical items, and inert waste such as soil and stones, was removed from the Former Stanley Works land owned by Concept Investments Limited.

The company and its director, Austin Fitzgerald, had admitted offences related to allowing an illegal waste site to operate without an environmental permit. At Sheffield Magistrates’ Court on 15 April, the court ordered the site cleared and imposed fines and costs totalling more than £20,000. The company was fined £8,000 with a £2,000 victim surcharge and £5,442 costs; Fitzgerald received a 12-month community order with 140 hours of unpaid work, £5,442 costs and a £114 victim surcharge.

The Agency said it first visited in July 2022 and later served a notice requiring clearance by 5 June 2023, which was not complied with. Another man, aged 38 and from Sheffield, pleaded guilty to operating the illegal waste site and was due to be sentenced on 16 September, the release said. Ben Hocking, Area Environment Manager for the Agency in Yorkshire, said the case should warn landowners that allowing illegal waste activity would lead to action.