Reddem Ltd, based at Queens Road, Wooler, appeared at Newcastle Magistrates鈥� Court on Friday 13th February in a prosecution brought by the Environment Agency.
It pleaded guilty to one offence of operating an illegal waste site and another of keeping or treating waste in a way likely to cause pollution to the environment or harm to human health by storing waste containing asbestos in open containers.
It was fined 拢4,000, and ordered to pay costs of 拢4,000 and a victim surcharge of 拢1,600.
The court heard that the demolition company was running an illegal waste site at The Old Gas Works Yard, at South Road in Wooler, bringing construction and demolition waste containing asbestos to the site before onward transportation for disposal.聽
Asbestos is a controlled waste and must be stored double-bagged in sealed containers. Skips used to store asbestos must also be kept enclosed, and it must not be transferred between different skips or containers.聽 Reddem had no environmental permit, which is required to carry out most waste activity.
The court was told that the issue was first reported to the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) by a local resident who had regularly seen waste with what looked like asbestos being brought onto the site and bulked into large containers.
In June 2023, an HSE inspector visited and spoke to a director of the company, who confirmed that asbestos cement was being moved around the site. On 23rd June 2023 the inspector served a prohibition notice to the company relating to asbestos disturbance and explained the activity must stop.
On the same day, Environment Agency officers visited and saw nine skips which appeared to contain asbestos. They issued a letter telling the company to stop the activity, and a formal notice requiring the land not to be disturbed until an inspection had taken place.
A joint site inspection took place on 30th June 2023 involving the HSE and Environment Agency, during which samples of waste were taken for analysis from six skips. It was later confirmed that all of the samples contained asbestos.
The Environment Agency鈥檚 investigation established that more than 40 tonnes of material containing asbestos was later removed to a properly permitted site for disposal.
Environment Agency area manager Gary Wallace said: 鈥�Asbestos is a known serious health hazard and this company has shown a complete disregard for the impact this could have had on its workers and nearby residents.
鈥淓nvironmental permits are there to protect the environment and communities and we will take action against those who flout the law.聽 Waste crime scars out communities and will not be tolerated.鈥�