THE former owner of a waste company which saw a huge fire at its base last year appeared at Swindon Crown Court today to plead not guilty to six breaches of environmental law.

Lee Averies, 47, of Wanborough, stood in the dock with his brother David, 30, of Taw Hill, who is also charged with the same six offences to which he has pleaded not guilty.

Averies Recycling was based at Marshgate which, in the summer of 2014, saw a huge fire which lasted for two months.

The brothers also owned Swindon Skips, which was based at Brindley Close on the Cheney Manor industrial estate and was the site of another large waste fire in November 2013.

The charges cover a number alleged offences at both sites over a 17 month period, staring in November 2013.

While the brothers have not been accused of having any involvement in either of the fires, the Environment Agency have accused them of breaching several conditions of their waste licences.

This includes keeping too much waste at both sites, failing to have adequate security and storing the waste in such a way which could cause a risk to public health.

In court, Lee Averies was described as the person most responsible for the day-to-day operation of Swindon Skips and Averies Recycling while his brother had far less involvement and was more of a silent partner.

The two companies have now gone into liquidation. As Swindon Borough Council is the landlord at Brindley Close, it has been left with clearing much of the waste left at the site.

No exact date for a trial, which is expected to last around four weeks, has been set but it is unlikely to be until the latter part of next year.

Both Lee and David, who remain on bail, have been told they must go back to court on January 29 when the exact details will be decided.

The fire at Marshgate burned for exactly eight weeks and saw smoke rise high into the sky which could be seen for miles around.

A number of agencies, including Swindon Borough Council, the Environment Agency and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue were involved in tackling the blaze.

The council is due to release a report early next year which will look at ways future incidents of the this nature could be handled.