A woman has mostly finished her cup of coffee. Her bus is approaching. A quick dump in the drain and she’s good to go. Right?
This humdrum morning action turned into much more earlier this month in London, bringing a surprise penalty, attention from the news media, and maybe even a change in the law.
Burcu Yesilyurt told the BBC that she was about to hop on a bus in Richmond, in southwest London, on Oct. 10, and was concerned that she would spill her coffee onboard. So she poured the remainder — “just a tiny little bit” — from a reusable cup down a road drain.
She was immediately approached by three officers, who informed her she had violated the law and would be fined 150 pounds (about $200).
The officers said she should have thrown the coffee away in the trash instead, as she had run afoul of Section 33 of the British Environmental Protection Act, which forbids disposing of waste improperly.
Ms. Yesilyurt said that she found the officers “quite intimidating.” (A statement from the Richmond Council, the local authority, said: “Contrary to the suggestion in reports, the enforcement officers acted appropriately and with sympathy. They were in no way aggressive.”)
“It feels quite unfair,” Ms. Yesilyurt said. “I think the fine is extreme. It’s not proportionate.”
The Environmental Protection Act does provide exceptions, though it was unlikely Ms. Yesilyurt could have evaded a fine by saying the pouring of her coffee was “done in an emergency in order to avoid danger to human health.” She might have made the case that her disposal was “innocuous enough to be so excluded.”
As news media attention increased and social media posters scoffed — “disproportionate,” “ridiculous,” “this country’s gone mad” — a reprieve arrived on Wednesday. The council said in a statement that while the fine was “justified,” it believed that should Ms. Yesilyurt appeal, it would very likely be overturned. Therefore, the council said it would cancel the fine.
And might this incident actually bring about systemic change? The council emphasized that it was committed to protecting waterways and keeping streets clean. But “we are also reviewing our advice on the disposal of liquids in a public place and will be updating this information on our website,” it said in the statement.
Victor Mather, who has been a reporter and editor at The Times for 25 years, covers sports and breaking news.
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