Sir James Bevan, chief executive at Environment Agency, urges for a total ban on UK waste exports in order to combat crime.
Sir James warns that current rules that allow certain types of waste to be sent overseas for processing could be used as a cover for illegal and harmful waste trafficking. A ban would make it more difficult to make illegal shipments.
The head of the Environmental Services Association (EA) made a speech Tuesday to the Environmental Services Association. He also called for regulators to have more tools to reduce waste crime, including higher fines and longer prison sentences.
Sir James warns that six years after he described waste crime as the new narcotics in his original statement, the problem has only gotten worse.
All evidence points to a rise in waste crime. He will confirm it.
The Environment Agency’s 2021 national study on waste crime found that waste crime was endemic in England.
We have good reasons to believe that the Covid lockdowns made it more difficult for law enforcement and the EA to operate freely. This has contributed to an additional increase in the past two years.
To be allowed to ship waste abroad, they must either comply with all applicable controls or have the consent of all authorities.
There is evidence of the problems UK waste has caused abroad. For example, plastic rubbish was burned and dumped in Turkey. This led to curbs being imposed by British authorities and importing countries.
Sir James is expected in his speech to say: While sending certain types of waste abroad may be legal, is it right? Is it morally acceptable to dump the waste we make on another country?
It is becoming more difficult to export waste from the UK as more countries refuse it.
Is the current legal framework protecting people and the environment from harm or allowing illegal and harmful waste trafficking to continue?
The Government’s resources and waste strategy for 2018 stated the UK’s intention to process more of its waste at home. With the strategy due to be updated next years, it could be the perfect opportunity for Sir James to send a strong message to stop waste exports.
He said that we should challenge ourselves to get to a point where all our waste is processed at home and all exports are stopped as soon as possible.
He will state that the UK has all the know-how necessary to process its waste at home. This would encourage more recycling, innovation, and new business, even for firms currently exporting legally.
He says that the EA supports the Government’s efforts to crack down on criminals using the current system, including enhanced background checks and permits.
The speech will call on the government to increase funding for waste crime prevention and to make use of income from the regulation of legitimate waste industries to combat criminal activity.
Our current policy is to prevent waste crime from ever happening.
One way to do this is to change the way criminals calculate the odds by imposing tougher penalties if they’re caught.
We would like to see larger fines for serious criminals. They are now treated as business expenses and more confiscation of criminals’ assets.
He will add that we would prefer to see longer sentences in prison, which would really concentrate the criminal mind.