A farmer has been fined £5,000 after he built flood defences with material including plastic and metal near the site of a protected Roman amphitheatre. He carried out the works without permission and was warned to stop by police but continued.
Michael Haines, 64, used 2,000 tonnes of material to create an artificial river bund to prevent the River Usk from flooding on land adjacent to the Roman Amphitheatre in Caerleon. He had previously owned the land but it had been sold to Cadw and leased back to him.
Despite being told by Cadw and police he was committing a crime by carrying out the work, Haines continued building the bund in order to protect farming land. He was arrested and charged under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.
