April 10th, 2007

A UK based waste transfer station has been fined thousands of pounds (GBP) over inappropriate disposal of asbestos waste. The company was fined eleven thousand GBP over the incident and had to pay around thirteen hundred GBP in addition to this for court costs. J & B Williams Brothers Limited pleaded guilty to the charged at Redditch Magistrates Court.

An official speaking on behalf of the Environment Agency said that the company, J & B Williams Brothers Limited, operated a waste transfer site in nearby Bromsgrove, and on a number of occasions in 2005 the site had been visited by Environmental Agency officials in order to check that regulations and rules were being adhered to.

When visiting the site environmental officials found that excessive levels of waste were being stored at the facility, and this included asbestos waste. According to officials some was also being burned and other controlled waste was not being inspected. It also turned out that the site was not licensed to even accept asbestos.

One environment official stated: "In order to reduce the risks to people and to the environment, anyone who handles waste needs to take all necessary steps to ensure that it is handled correctly. Members of the waste industry should be leading by example in this. The Environment Agency controls much of the waste industry using waste management licences. Failure to comply with the conditions in these licences can significantly increase the risk to both the environment and the public."