And, the Agency stopped operations at 116 of the 224 new illegal waste sites discovered since April in under 90 days. This resulted in 86 illegal waste sites being cleared, with over 133,000 cubic metres of waste ‘diverted’ into the legitimate waste industry.
The revelation came as Dan Rogerson defended the Environment Agency’s record on investigating waste permit breaches in Parliament on Wednesday (February 11), where Barbara Keeley, Labour MP for Worsley and Eccles South, raised questions about a lack enforcement by the Environment Agency.
She cited the Agency’s handling of Manchester-based White Recycling Ltd – where ‘problems of excess waste, dust and flies’ had caused ‘concern and distress’ to a number of her constituents.
Eccles-based White Recycling Ltd, which had been recycling and treating around 175,000 tonnes of waste per year, also suffered two fires between April 2013 and October 2014.
The first incident saw 20 firefighters called to the site after a shredder caught fire, while the October blaze involved a large amount of waste catching alight in a skip.
According to Ms Keeley, the latter incident took six days for fire crews to get under control, generating a large amount of smoke that at the time was considered a health risk by Public Heath England.
By the time the Environment Agency suspended White Recycling’s waste permit last month, Ms Keeley argued that it was “too little, too late”. The suspension coincided with the firm going into liquidation with the loss of around 70 jobs.
Compliance
Speaking in Parliament, Ms Keeley said: “In 2014 I asked the Environment Agency to take swift and robust action to address the problems of excess waste, dust and flies—the same old problems that we had had for years. In reply, the agency agreed to allow the company 13 weeks further to sort out the problems. White Recycling had already had a year to come into compliance and when I complained it was given another 13 weeks.
“Too often the Environment Agency seems to have used a light-touch approach to enforcement, failing to consider the impact that operations at such sites have on nearby communities.”
In response, Mr Rogerson conceded that the situation at White Recycling had been “unacceptable”, and said the Environment Agency should always take action swiftly and use its powers to bear down on poor practice.
He also confirmed the launch of a consultation on changes to the Agency’s standard rules for environmental permits which will take place ‘in the coming weeks’. The proposed changes include the introduction of a new requirement for a fire prevention plan for those sites with permits that are allowed to store combustible waste material (see letsrecycle.com story).
Balance
Mr Rogerson said: “The Environment Agency sometimes faces a difficult challenge of striking the right balance between encouraging businesses to comply and supporting growth while coming down firmly on those who flout the law or cause harm to local communities and the environment.
“Persistent and entrenched poor performance at waste management sites causes nuisance to local communities, pollutes the environment and undermines the legitimate waste management sector, which is working hard to deliver a much better service.”
Mr Rogerson added that the Environment Agency has increased its interventions to reduce the risk of serious fires since September 2014.
In that month, 76 high-risk sites were identified, 88% of which—including White Recycling—are now subject to enforcement action, including investigation for prosecution. The remaining 12% have improved and are now compliant.
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