Illegally Shipped Waste to Return to U.K.

When Brazilian port workers began inspecting the contents of a cargo ship from the U.K., they were surprised to find more than 1,400 tons of waste, labeled as recyclable plastics, included with the cargo.

The waste, packed in 89 shipping containers, was unloaded in three southern Brazilian ports and was said to contain batteries, computer parts, DVDs, cleaning product containers, clothes, shoes, old toys, baby diapers, food remains and medical waste, among other items.

The U.K. and Brazil are both signatories of the Basel Convention, the United Nations treaty that controls the cross-border movement of hazardous waste. An investigation has been launched to determine how the waste was exported and if the companies responsible for the export were in violation of the international treaty.

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According to the Times Online, public anger in Brazil was fueled when a note, written in Portuguese, was found on a container of dirty toys advising the toys be washed before being given to "poor Brazilian children." Photo: timesonline.co.uk

Roberto Messias, head of the Brazilian environment agency, IBAMA, declared Saturday that Brazil was “not a big rubbish dump of the world” and called for “repatriation of this garbage.”

Britain’s Environment Agency (EA) said Sunday that arrangements are being made for the waste, most of which is reportedly domestic rather than hazardous, to be returned to the U.K.

EA Director of Solid Waste, Liz Parks, warned that British courts take the dumping of hazardous waste seriously.

“We do prosecute people,” Parks told BBC News. “We’ve had a number of successful prosecutions in recent years. And in fact in the crown court, people can be fined unlimited amounts and prison sentences imposed.”

Parks indicated that return of the waste to the U.K. could take weeks.

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3 Comments

  1. richard heritage

    posted on July 24th, 2009 at 12:52 am

    The dumping of toxic waste to countries such as Brazil is nothing new. In 1989 while working in West Africa I discovered tons of waste dumped in Guinea Bissau. Questioning this with the government led to my deportation. Officials in these countries are open to bribery which is the main cause for this waste landing up there.

  2. Off-site Waste Disposal Continues to Create Liabilities « Your EHS Connection

    posted on July 24th, 2009 at 11:02 am

    [...] case inlolves waste generated in the UK that was intercepted by Brazilian authorities.  Over 80 [...]

  3. Renato

    posted on July 29th, 2009 at 1:41 pm

    As always, the richest countries in the world think they can use other Nations Latin America and Africa as their garbage can.

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