EA makes arrests in Brazil waste shipment investigation

The Agency revealed that the three men, aged 49, 28 and 24, were arrested this morning following raids on three properties in the Swindon area. The men cannot be named for legal reasons.

Today's arrests mark significant progress in our investigation into the alleged illegal exports of waste from the UK to Brazil

 
Liz Parkes, Environment Agency

Officers from its National Environmental Crime Team carried out the operation with support from Wiltshire Police, and the Agency's head of waste, Liz Parkes, claimed they represented a step forward in the investigation into the alleged illegal shipments.

“Today's arrests mark significant progress in our investigation into the alleged illegal exports of waste from the UK to Brazil. We are working with the shipping lines for the return of the waste, at their own expense, and are planning to carry out an investigation of the containers once they have been released by Brazilian authorities and returned to the UK,” she said.

The raids come just a day after the parliamentary committee for environment, food and rural affairs announced that it had reopened its inquiry into the 2007 Waste Strategy to examine the UK's system for controlling waste exports, after the allegations of waste being sent to Brazil came to light (see letsrecycle.com story).

The EA has said it is working with the Brazilian authorities to investigate the origin of the 99 shipping containers that were allegedly exported from the UK to Brazil.

While Brazil's enforcement agency IBAMA has claimed that at least two of the containers have a mixture of household and clinical waste, including syringes and condoms, the EA has said it cannot confirm this at the moment.

It is planned to carry out an investigation of the containers once the Brazilian authorities release them and they are returned to the UK, before ensuring the waste is handled and disposed of correctly.

The Agency has also confirmed that the shipping lines contracted to transport the containers from the UK to Brazil have agreed to return them at their own expense.