Last week (18 December), Leicester Crown Court heard how a 41-year-old employee of the company was sweeping up around the base of stacks of baled waste at the 30,000 tonnes per-year capacity materials recycling facility (MRF) in November 2013, when a stack collapsed on him.
The worker sustained serious head and brain injuries including a fractured eye socket, back and skull.
An investigation into the incident by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company did not identify the risks of inconsistent stacking and de-stacking of baled waste, or the simple controls to manage it.
Veolia ES (UK) Limited, of Pentonville Road, London, was fined a total of £450,000, with costs of £11,676 after pleading guilty to an offence under Regulation 10(4) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
Assessment
Speaking after the hearing HSE inspector Alison Cook said: “Veolia relied upon a flawed and inadequate generic risk assessment.
“Veolia even failed to implement the few inadequate controls they had listed. As consequence workers were exposed over a number of years to the risk of being struck by falling bales of waste. Unfortunately for one worker he was hit by falling bales, causing life changing injuries that have had serious long term effects.
“This prosecution sends a clear message to large organisations that exposing workers to foreseeable risks over a sustained period of time will not be tolerated.”
Veolia opened the Castle Donington site at the Trent Lane industrial estate near Derby in 2010 to service its commercial waste clients in the region. The plant receives and sorts material such as paper, cardboard, cans and plastics.
Commenting on the incident, a Veolia spokesperson said: “We deeply regret this incident and the injury suffered by our colleague at our facility on Trent Lane, Castle Donington. As a company we treat health and safety as the highest operational priority. We have since reviewed all relevant safety procedures and have taken the necessary steps to ensure the highest safety standards during the stacking of bales at all of our sites.”
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