News

Councils strike deal on waste PEMBROKESHIRE and

Published

11 years ago

February 24, 2015

Bin and gone: councils to ship waste overseas.

Ceredigion County Councils have struck a new deal to process and export residual waste overseas.

The innovative approach will save each council over £350,000 a year – and also create 11 jobs at Pembroke Dock.

It will also benefit the environment at home and abroad.

Under the new contract which the two councils have signed with Potters Waste Management, waste from the two counties that cannot be recycled will be exported to Sweden.

There it will be used in a high efficiency power station to produce both electricity and heat for local Swedish households.

Cllr Huw George, Pembrokeshire’s Cabinet Member for Environmental and Regulatory Services said the new contract would be a massive benefit to the county.

“It will create jobs, make savings and ensure an environmentally improved alternative to landfill for the disposal of our black bag waste,” he said.

The new contract starts on March 1 this year with the first shipment expected to take place at the beginning of June.

Waste collected by the two counties will first be processed at sites at Pembroke Port and in Lampeter to remove certain recyclable materials.

It will then be shredded, baled and wrapped at Pembroke Port to create a Refuse Derived Fuel which can be shipped overseas.

The contract has been let under an innovative framework contract that Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion have created with advice from private sector partners, Eunomia.

Under the framework, any other council can buy waste disposal services from one of seven suppliers, including two UK based and five export solutions.

The framework contract is available to all other councils in Wales and Pembrokeshire County Council has already had interest from a number of other authorities about joining.

Richard Brown, Pembrokeshire Head of Environment and Civil Contingencies, said the contract provided an opportunity for achieving cost savings for the County Council while also creating jobs and boosting recycling rates.

“It provides a flexible, low-risk, value-for-money approach that enables us to divert waste from landfill in the short term, but avoids committing too much waste to incineration in the long term as recycling rates escalate,” he said.

He added that using the excess capacity in Swedish incinerators allowed the waste to be disposed of cheaply, while the use of combined heat and power technology enabled far more energy to be extracted from the waste compared with most UK incinerators, making it both a green and economical solution.

Kevin Hobbs, Short Sea Director at the Port of Milford Haven said. “This is an excellent demonstration of effective collaboration between Pembrokeshire County Council and the Port of Milford Haven, in a scheme that will benefit the county’s ratepayers and create jobs within the Haven Waterway Enterprise Zone too. It’s also a great example of how having a well serviced port in the County can connect the region with new markets far away.”

Debbie Potter, Operations Director of Potters Waste Management said the company was delighted to have won the contract: “This is a new venture for us and we are delighted to be working with Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion County Councils on this innovative scheme to make best user of waste, while also creating employment opportunities,” she said.

“The framework contract gives us the opportunity to work with all other councils in Wales to help them secure savings and meet their financial and performance demands.”

The contract takes place against a background of increased financial and performance pressure on Welsh local authorities over their management of their municipal waste.

Authorities face landfill tax of £80 per tonne, fines for any biodegradable waste that is landfilled above a set allowance, and challenging statutory recycling targets.

Crime

Man charged with strangulation and assault offences after October incident

Published

2 minutes ago

December 14, 2025

Court Reporter

A MAN recorded in court as having no fixed abode has appeared before magistrates charged with intentional strangulation and two further assault offences.

Michael Sudbury, 50, whose address was not read out in court, but in Herald records is Glan Hafan, Llangwm, appeared before the bench facing multiple charges.

The charges relate to an incident on 22 October 2025 and include:

Intentional strangulation, contrary to section 75A of the Serious Crime Act 2015
Common assault
Assault by beating

No further details of the alleged incident were opened in court, and no plea was entered at this stage.

Sudbury was remanded on conditional bail, with the case listed to return to magistrates later this month.

Crime

Haverfordwest man sent to Crown Court on multiple serious charges

Published

24 minutes ago

December 14, 2025

Court Reporter

Defendant remanded in custody

A HAVERFORDWEST man has been sent to Swansea Crown Court to stand trial on a series of A 49-year-old Haverfordwest resident has been committed to Swansea Crown Court to face trial on multiple serious charges deemed too grave for magistrates to handle.

David Guy, of Market Street, Haverfordwest, appeared before Haverfordwest magistrates facing a series of allegations stemming from a single case. The charges, which were not detailed in open court, include:

Assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH)
A second count of assault
Criminal damage
An additional allegation of interpersonal violence
A public order offence

Magistrates declined jurisdiction, determining that the matters exceeded their sentencing powers, and sent the case in its entirety to Swansea Crown Court.

Guy was remanded in custody pending his next appearance. The court register notes: “Sent to Crown Court for trial in custody – next hearing at Swansea Crown Court.”

A date for the initial Crown Court hearing will be set administratively. Guy will remain in custody until then.

The Pembrokeshire Herald will provide further updates as the case progresses in the Crown Court.

Crime

Castlemartin man back before magistrates over multiple alleged assaults

Published

30 minutes ago

December 14, 2025

Court Reporter

Defendant remanded on conditional bail ahead of further hearing

A CASTLEMARTIN man has appeared repeatedly before magistrates this month over a string A 40-year-old man from Castlemartin has made repeated appearances before magistrates this month in connection with a series of serious alleged offences, including assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH), intentional non-fatal strangulation, common assault, and criminal damage.

Anthony Alcock, of Pwll Street, Castlemartin, is facing six linked charges stemming from incidents said to have occurred earlier this year. These appear to relate to the same complainant in what is understood to be a single ongoing domestic abuse prosecution.

During recent administrative hearings at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court, Alcock did not enter pleas while matters of bail and case management were addressed.

Charges Include:

Assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH)
Intentional non-fatal strangulation
Common assault on a woman
Criminal damage in a domestic context
Additional assault allegations involving the same complainant
Breach of bail conditions

Alcock was initially granted conditional bail but was subsequently brought before the court on two occasions for alleged breaches. On those instances, magistrates remanded him in custody ahead of further hearings. He was later re-granted conditional bail, subject to strict conditions such as no contact with the complainant and exclusion from specified locations.

Magistrates have now declined jurisdiction, ruling that the case—particularly the more serious charges involving non-fatal strangulation—is too grave for summary trial. It has been committed to Swansea Crown Court for plea, trial, or sentencing.

No detailed evidence has been presented in open court at this preliminary stage. Alcock remains on conditional bail pending his next appearance at the Crown Court.