It’s been going on for decades, and nobody has ever called them out on it. Perhaps that’s what gave British companies the balls to continue dumping toxic hazardous waste in countries like Brazil and Ghana for all these years, despite the fact that it’s clearly harmful to the environment and human health. But two companies have finally been formally accused of dumping, which may help call attention to the problem.
Not that Britain is alone – companies in the United States and other Western countries do it too, and government has looked the other way. Our toxic waste has long been somebody else’s problem – namely, poor people who have no way to protect themselves from the onslaught of chemicals.
From Times Online:
Hilary Benn, the Environment Secretary, ordered an investigation into two British companies linked to 90 shipping containers containing 1,400 tonnes of waste. They included syringes, condoms and nappies. The companies that received the waste — sent from Felixstowe to three Brazilian ports — said that they had been expecting recyclable plastic.
In a separate case, the Ministry of Defence was unable to explain how one of its computers was found by The Times on a notorious dump on the outskirts of Accra, Ghana. Children as young as 5 extract scrap metal from electrical items there and are exposed to potentially lethal chemicals.
Inspectors from Brazil’s environment agency, Ibama, found hospital waste in several containers, reportedly including bags of blood. Another container was full of dirty toys with a note in Portuguese saying they should be washed before being given to “poor Brazilian children”.
Ingrid Oberg, an Ibama official, who opened containers found in the port of Santos on national television news, said: “Whoever put this rubbish into the containers in the UK knew what they were doing and knew where they were going, so it is a criminal act. England needs to assume responsibility.”
Worldwide Biorecyclables Ltd and UK Multiplas Recycling Ltd are the companies being investigated. They’re hardly the only ones that do it, but forcing these companies to take responsibility for their actions may make others think twice before continuing the despicable practice.
Unfortunately, they’ll probably just find sneakier ways to do it. The European Union tightened toxic shipment rules in 2007 and dumping still happens all the time.
PBS Frontline has been conducting an investigation into e-waste dumping in Ghana – check out the video in our recent post, ‘Ghana, an E-Waste Graveyard’.
Link [Times Online]
Photo credit: BBC News
