A man has pleaded guilty to fly-tipping on a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Alexandru Laurentiu Mitrea, 25, of Buckingham Road, Edgware, Middlesex, illegally dumped commercial freezers at Park Lane, Burnam, after he needed to clear out the space in his van to “urgently” remove scrap metal from a friend’s house in Cookham.

Mr Mitrea confessed to removing and dumping the freezers, saying he did it on a “temporary basis”. He said he picked up the scrap metal from his friend’s house, weighed it in and then returned for the freezers but was unable to find them.

He admitted he then gave up and left them without contacting the authorities.

He was fined £1,200 and was ordered to pay clean-up and prosecution costs of £1,223 as well as a victim surcharge of £120, making the total £2,543.

Mr Mitrea was working to remove the freezers for A&A Pizza Company Ltd, a take-away franchise, which, investigators said “failed in its duty of care” to use a properly registered waste carrier and ensure lawful disposal of the freezers.

The company was fined £4,000 for duty of care failure and ordered to pay £920 in costs, as well as a victim surcharge £400, which came to a total of £5,150.

Mike Smith, chairman of the joint waste partnership for Buckinghamshire, said: "This case, which is a great example of how authorities work together to tackle fly-tipping, is also a stark reminder to businesses and individuals that they have a duty – which the courts will enforce – to make sure they use a registered waste carrier who will dispose of their waste properly."

SSSIs are protected by law to conserve their wildlife or geology.