It’s not every day that a picturesque English village finds itself thrust into the national spotlight over a scandal involving heaps of rubbish, angry neighbors, and a farmer with a flair for controversy. Yet, Peopleton in Worcestershire is now the epicenter of a growing debate about illegal dumping, waste crime, and the struggle between rural tranquility and modern-day environmental challenges.
On December 11, 2025, Carl Powell, an 80-year-old farmer whose family has owned Stone Arrow Farm since 1963, became the latest flashpoint in the UK’s ongoing battle against illegal waste. Powell is under investigation for activities on his 90-acre property, which sits just yards from the black and white timbered and thatched cottages that define Peopleton’s charm. According to the Daily Mail, the farm is now home to a sprawling lorry park packed with more than 50 heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) and a site used for crushing and storing dumped bricks and rubble.
This isn’t Powell’s first brush with local notoriety. Back in 2021, he made headlines—and no friends—by erecting a towering billboard that labeled Peopleton a “murderous, lawless and godforsaken place.” Police fined him £90 for causing “harassment, alarm or distress,” but he was eventually cleared of a public order offence. The sign has since been altered, but Powell’s relationship with his neighbors remains, to put it mildly, fraught.
Now, the focus has shifted from words to waste. Villagers, whose homes can fetch more than £500,000, are furious about the noise, dust, and disruption caused by the lorry park and dumping operation. “There’s noise every day and in the summer dust from the brick crusher covers the house and cars,” one resident told the Daily Mail. “You can’t hang your washing out and no point opening windows. We live in a very beautiful area but sadly have this eyesore down the road. It seems to be taking an age to get it shut down. We just hope the end is in sight.”
Powell, for his part, insists he’s not the villain here. He claims the dump and lorry park are operated by a tenant who rents part of his land. “The chap who rents the land from me is using the land to recycle wood and stone and vehicles,” Powell told reporters. “He hasn’t broken the law but he’s bent it a bit. But we’re sorting it out with the Environment Agency.” When asked how much he earns from the arrangement, Powell quipped, “Not enough for the trouble he’s caused me.”
But for many of Peopleton’s 600 residents, the situation has gone far beyond neighborly squabbles. “Mr Powell got his 15 minutes of fame when he called us all nasty, lawless and godforsaken but frankly I think he was describing someone closer to home,” another villager remarked. “The sooner the authorities step in the better. Some residents, particularly those living a few hundred yards from the lorry site, are at their wits end. Lorries have been going in and out of the site at all hours of the day and night. It’s making life pretty miserable for people.”
The authorities have taken notice. In January 2025, the Environment Agency (EA) served a stop notice on the site, which was initially complied with. However, activities have since resumed, prompting the EA to consider further enforcement steps. An EA spokesperson stated, “Illegal waste crime scars our communities and the site at Peopleton is something we’re committed to tackling together.” The local parish council echoed this, saying, “Together we’re pulling every lever available to us to disrupt those who profit from the harm illegal waste sites cause.”
Even Conservative MP Nigel Huddleston, who represents Droitwich and Evesham, has weighed in, telling the Daily Mail, “I am very concerned by the ongoing activities at Stone Arrow Farm. Having met local residents on several occasions about this matter, I know how damaging these activities are for the local community.”
Peopleton’s saga is not an isolated incident. Just a day earlier, the Telegraph reported on a massive illegal dump near Kidlington, Oxfordshire, where a 150-metre long, 10-metre high pile of refuse was discovered on the banks of the River Cherwell. The Lords environment select committee blasted the UK Government for what it called “complacency” in tackling illegal dumping and waste crime nationwide. Baroness Sheehan, the committee’s chairman, minced no words: “The committee is deeply disappointed with the Government’s complacent response. It will give succour to the organised criminal gangs who are profiteering from waste crime and inflicting misery on impacted communities across the country whilst damaging precious environments.”
The Lords committee had written to Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds on October 28, 2025, urging the creation of a single telephone line for reporting waste crime and calling for stronger collaboration between local government and police. The Government, however, rejected the single telephone line proposal, arguing that the gov.uk website already provides an online reporting page for fly-tipping and illegal waste dumping. Reynolds said, “The gov.uk site has a single page titled ‘Report fly tipping or illegal waste dumping.’ This webpage is the top return when searched for using sites like Google.” She also cited concerns that an independent review of how waste crime is tackled would “divert resources,” but did not provide a timeline for legislative reform.
The Environment Agency, meanwhile, came under fire for failing to disclose the existence of the Kidlington tip during a committee appearance, despite being aware of it. Lady Sheehan announced she would write to the Secretary of State regarding this omission. The Government, for its part, insists it is “bearing down on the cynical waste criminals who damage our environment, harm legitimate businesses and blight our communities,” according to a Defra spokesperson. The agency says it is increasing funding for waste crime enforcement by 50% and handing out tougher sentences to offenders.
Tim Bonner, chief executive of the Countryside Alliance, criticized the Government’s approach, saying, “Sadly, the Government does not seem to have grasped either the seriousness of the environmental damage being done by waste crime in the countryside or the public disgust at its lack of action. The Government has created a situation in which criminal networks thrive.”
As the dust—quite literally—settles over Peopleton and Kidlington, the UK faces tough questions about how to balance rural livelihoods, environmental stewardship, and the rights of communities to live free from the blight of illegal dumping. For now, villagers like those in Peopleton can only hope that authorities follow through on their promises, and that their “godforsaken” troubles soon become a thing of the past.