littering public places ~ Nurse fined for fly-tipping !!

 

Sometimes rules are ridiculous !  - in UK, a  generous nurse was   fined £150 for offering green apples frees to passer-bys !!

It is a fruit for long associated with happiness and health – the good looking, sweet tasting, luscious, Apple - an edible fruit  from an apple tree (Malus domestica). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus Malus. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, Malus sieversii, is still found today. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe and were brought to North America by European colonists.  Apple trees are large if grown from seed. Generally, apple cultivars are propagated by grafting onto rootstocks, which control the size of the resulting tree. There are more than 7,500 known cultivars of apples, resulting in a range of desired characteristics. Different cultivars are bred for various tastes and use, including cooking, eating raw and cider production.

Littering on road and public places is no doubt bad !  ~  Fly-tipping is defined as "the illegal deposit of any waste on to land that does not have a licence to accept it".  Illegal dumping,  also called fly dumping or fly tipping (UK),  is the dumping of waste illegally instead of using an authorized method such as kerbside collection or using an authorized rubbish dump.  The United States Environmental Protection Agency developed a “profile” of the typical illegal dumper. Characteristics of offenders include local residents, construction and landscaping contractors, waste removers, scrap yard operators, and automobile and tire repair shops.  

Lydia Farrell, 33, thought she was doing a 'good deed' when she placed the apples on the pavement inside a box clearly labelled 'free eating apples'. They had fallen from a tree in her garden and would have gone to waste if they weren't offered around. But when Lydia got home she was horrified to find Ealing Council had taken a dim view of her actions, pushing a letter through her door accusing her of littering and ordering her to pay a £150 fine or face court action.

The west London council has said it will withdraw the fine after receiving backlash online.  Lydia Farrell said she was 'disheartened' to return to her home in Ealing, west London, to find the council had fined her for offering apples to neighbours. The offending fruits were placed in a bucket that was clearly labelled 'free eating apples'

Lydia said  - 'We'd been away for a few days and not only did we come home to that fine but also someone had forced entry into our back garden and broken our fence,' she told Metro.co.uk. 'So two real crimes were committed by other people and I'm the only one who gets fined.  'I just feel it was quite sad that the council would fine me for doing a good deed.' Some were also positioned inside cardboard boxes. They had fallen from a tree in her garden and would have gone to waste if they weren't offered around. 

Ealing Council said its leader, Councillor Julian Bell, contacted Lydia as soon as he heard what had happened. A spokesman said: 'The council recognises the spirit of the residents' actions was with good intentions. We will be in touch with Ms Farrell to rescind the fine.  'Our priority is to make sure the borough is clean and litter free and we apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused'.

Lydia said she will continue to share the apples but may have to 'fix them to my wall somehow'. She also has some passionfruits ripening at present.

Interesting ! 

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

25.08.2020