A man from Milford Haven who failed to remove scrap and waste from his garden has been fined in court.

Forty-year-old Andrew Johns, of Richard John Road, was charged with failing to comply with a notice to maintain land.

Mr. Johns appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court on Monday to admit the offence which occurred between February 21 and December 4 last year.

Prosecuting on behalf of Pembrokeshire County Council, Jill Davies told the court that the defendant had been told to remove scrap and waste from his garden by the council.

PCC conducted three investigations and made numerous site visits to the area.

Ms. Davies said that the scrap which was being stored on the defendant’s land was having a negative impact on the surrounding area.

On December 4, a notice was served on the defendant, with no appeal being made.

After another site visit which was made on January 7, PCC brought the case to court after exhausting all attempts to get the land cleared.

Mr. Johns, who was not represented, told magistrates that the issue had been going on for a number of years and that his neighbours had a vendetta against him.

He added that people had asked him to store waste in his garden.

Mr. Johns concluded his remarks by saying that most of the waste had gone, apart from a washing machine.

During exchanges with the defendant, the chairman of the bench, said: “You have certain rights over your land, but so does the community.

“The proper place for scrap is the scrapyard, you need to get rid of this.”

Mr. Johns was advised by the chairman to report incidents of people dumping waste on his land to the county council.

Magistrates ordered the defendant to pay a total of £1,000 in fines and costs.

He was also told to get a scrap merchant to get rid of the remaining scrap.