A TROWBRIDGE electrical company has been ordered to pay more than £3,000 for failure to recover and recycle packing waste.

Wilts Wholesale and Electrical Company Ltd pleaded guilty to two offences, dating back to 1998 and 1999, at Trowbridge Crown Court on Friday.

The firm also pleaded guilty to four further offences under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (packaging waste) Regulations.

It was fined a total of £2,400 and ordered to pay £728 costs.

Under legislation brought in by the government in 1997, firms with an annual turnover of £2m or more, that handle over 50 tonnes of packaging a year, must contribute to reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill sites.

Businesses meeting the criteria must register annually with the Environment Agency or an approved scheme.

The Environment Agency brought the prosecution after the firm registered in 2000 and figures provided led officers to believe that it should have registered in the two previous years as well.

Mark Pritchard for the agency said: "Today's packaging is tomorrow's waste. Big firms must take responsibility for their packaging and help cut down on waste.

"In this case the court recognised that failure to comply with these regulations is a serious matter."

Wilts Wholesale Electrical sells electrical installation equipment to traders and factories through 42 branches across southern England, the Midlands and South Wales.