The government body says domestic waste items including plastic bottles should not have been mixed in with material used to construct newly-laid path by council contractor, reports James Cracknell

Enfield Council has been ordered to remove “inappropriate waste” from its award-winning woodland after items including plastic bottles, crisp packets, cutlery, shoes, paint rollers, a saw and an Argos gift card were discovered buried in a newly-laid footpath.

The Environment Agency was forced to step in after the domestic waste discovery was made by a dog-walker using footpaths recently installed at Enfield Chase Woodland, the council’s flagship environmental project and largest tree-planting scheme in London.

Before several additional fields are due to be planted up by volunteers with tree saplings this winter, an unknown contractor hired by the council laid around one kilometre of footpaths between Botany Bay and Rectory Farm.

But Georgia Elliot-Smith, a local environmental campaigner, noticed a number of strange waste items buried in the material used to lay the path when she walked it with her dog earlier this month.

While the council claimed the footpath was made using “certified and commonly used product made from recycled construction waste” in response to enquiries last week from the Dispatch, the Environment Agency has confirmed today (Thursday 19^th) that the material breaches environmental law and that it had ordered the council to remove it.

Georgia Elliot-Smith told the Dispatch: “This is waste crime. It was full of bits of plastic bags, toothpaste tubes, shoes, socks – domestic waste as well as construction waste.

“Waste crime is very widespread, they mix waste in with construction materials. It is the fault of the council because the project manager should have been doing regular inspections of the site.

“It was immediately obvious what was going on […] Even someone loosely involved with construction could have seen it was wrong, so there is an absolute failure by the council to monitor it, and no contractor could have laid that down without knowing.”

As well as strange and unusual items, including part of an electric razor, a boot and a spoon, when the Dispatch visited a section of partially dug-up footpath last week it was strewn with regular plastic waste items such as bottles and crisp packets.

Acknowledging it was illegal and action was being taken against the council, an Environment Agency spokesperson said: “Following a complaint from a member of the public, we have given advice to Enfield Council and its contractor over the use of inappropriate waste materials in a newly-laid footpath at Enfield Chase.

“Specialist waste management officers have inspected the footpath and will make sure the work is done to their satisfaction, with no risk to the environment.

“The waste material that shouldn’t have been mixed in with recycled aggregate included paint rollers, wood, metal and plastic. We plan more visits to the site in January to make sure the work is re-done to comply with environmental law.”

The new footpath will, once complete, create a circular route through Enfield Chase Woodland, where 140,000 trees have been planted since 2020 as part of a partnership between the council and environmental charity Thames21, with another 100,000 due to be planted over the next year. The new paths have been funded with a £500,000 grant from City Hall.

Ridgeway councillor Edward Smith said he had raised the “unsightly condition” of the new paths with the council which had “promised that additional inspections will take place in future to ensure that the quality of the aggregate used meets the required standards”.

After the Dispatch approached the council last week, Chinelo Anyanwu, the council’s cabinet member for environment, culture and public spaces, said: “We appreciate the vigilance of members of the public and the opportunity to clarify the situation. We are committed to maintaining high environmental standards and ensuring the safety and quality of our projects.

“The material used for this path is called MOT Type 1 Recycled Aggregate. It’s a certified and commonly used product made from recycled construction waste like concrete, brick, and asphalt. This material follows strict rules to ensure it’s safe and environmentally friendly.

“It can contain small amounts of non-recyclable items like plastics, cables, or metals, up to 1% by weight, which is within the standards set by UK regulations. We always use materials that meet these strict guidelines.”

While denying the material used was illegal, the council did admit that, in response to “concerns raised” it had “instructed the contractor to carry out additional walking inspections along the path, during which any visible waste materials, such as cables or plastics, will be removed, and carry out additional material testing to confirm it remains compliant with the required standards”.

The council also claimed that it had “invited” the Environment Agency to meet the council on site and that it was “happy we are operating within the regulations” – but the agency’s own statement today directly contradicts these claims.

Georgia said she thought it was “an incredibly disappointing response from the council” and that she now feared “they are going to let the contractor off the hook”.

The council has not revealed which contractor it used.

Two years ago, Enfield Chase Woodland Restoration Project picked up a prize from the London Tree and Woodland Awards organised by the Forestry Commission and supported by the Mayor of London. The council and Thames21 were also joint recipients of a prestigious Ashden Award last year for their work across Enfield, which also includes a network of wetland habitats.

Anyone who suspects environmental pollution can call the Environment Agency’s 24-hour incident hotline on 0800 807 060.

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