The Durham Road site was shut down by the Environment Agency in September 2021 because of a “serious risk” of fire created by the storage of “excessive amounts of recycling materials”.
Nobody was injured in the blaze, to which the fire service was called at 10.38pm on Monday and as of yesterday afternoon is under control.
At the height of the fire, nine fire engines attended the scene, along with an aerial ladder platform.
Two fire engines remain at the site and expect to stay there for the rest of the day.
Peter Heath, deputy chief fire officer of Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service, said: “We are currently still in attendance of an incident at a commercial property on Durham Road in Birtley.
“However, we are on top of the incident and have downgraded from a major incident to a significant fire and have begun scaling back our presence.”
Having arrested one man and with CCTV enquiries underway, police are also keen to trace another who was believed to be at the scene shortly before the fire and may be able to help.
Letsrecycle.com contacted Shee Recycling for comment.
Shee Recycling
On its website, Shee Recycling describes itself as a “family-run waste management company”, and offers services including collections for cardboard, plastics, paper, metal, cans, waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), general waste, and glass, alongside a security shredding service.
The Environment Agency says it and officers from Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service visited the company’s Durham Road site “numerous times” during 2021 to encourage the operators to bring the site into compliance with fire prevention guidance, including reducing waste volumes and introducing fire breaks between piles of waste.
After appropriate action was not taken, the Agency secured a Restriction Order from Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court in September 2021, prohibiting anyone from entering or depositing more waste on the site.
Since the imposition of the restriction, access to the site has been secured, with Shee Recycling unable to enter other than under limited circumstances agreed by and under the supervision of the Agency.
Shee Recycling is the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation by the Agency for storing waste in a manner likely to cause harm to the environment at its Durham Road site, the environmental regulator says.
Environmental impacts
A spokesperson for the Environment Agency told letsrecycle.com that the regulator was supporting partners including Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Services to deal with the fire.
They said: “We are working to identify and mitigate environmental impacts and offering advice and guidance on managing any run-off water from the fire.
“We have also deployed air quality monitoring equipment to assist the multi-agency response and to support the UK Health Security Agency in providing public health advice.
“Our priority is managing the potential impact of this incident on the health, safety and wellbeing of people and the environment.”
Northumbria Police has encouraged anyone with information to get in contact via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of its website or by calling 101 quoting reference number NP-20220207-1158.
Alternatively, people can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
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