A scrap metal company, Baseforce Metals & Demo Ltd, has been ordered to pay more than £28,000 after it admitted keeping and treating waste without the necessary waste management licence.
The company also pleaded guilty to treating waste in a manner likely to pollute the environment or cause harm to human health.
Environment Agency investigators found that a large amount of scrap metal was being treated and stored on the company's Leyton site, with end-of-life vehicles being crushed and stored without proper measures in place to decontaminate them. Furthermore, tyres, drums, batteries, engines and other car components were being stored on the site. Pools of contaminated surface-water and oil were also seen.
Changes to the End-of-Life Vehicle Regulations SI 2003/2635 now require sites that keep depolluted waste vehicles to apply for a waste management licence. This is to ensure that premises have the necessary infrastructure to carry out the work safely, including impermeable surfaces and sealed drainage systems to prevent fluids escaping into the environment.
Senior Environment Officer, Andrew Stevens said, "Not ensuring that waste is disposed of properly is highly irresponsible, and shows a blatant disregard for the environment. This company's activities have resulted in significant, albeit localised, contamination of the land. We are pleased that the court has recognised the gravity of this incident."
