Stringent environmental controls and targets have made us greener, but in some cases, greedier, argues Niall Burns of IRC Security who describes how local authorities in the UK are having to engage covert surveillance to police waste management.
by Niall Burns
In the north of England there is an old adage: ‘Where there’s muck, there’s brass’ (or money), while in the US they may argue there’s ‘cash in trash’. Both phrases have never before had such resonance as recycling rubbish has become big business around the world.
But where there is muck there are also people engaged in dirtier practices, trying to make illicit money from a system of stringent environmental controls and regulations. Ironically these measures have been put in place for the greater transparency of waste disposal, but in practice they muddy the waters so that wrongdoing can thrive in dumps across Europe.
Governments needed to hit key targets in line with EU edicts, including the WEEE regulations and international agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol. Ten years ago the Waste Strategy 2000 set out the UK government’s vision for the long-term, sustainable management of waste and set targets for waste recycling, recovery and diversion from landfill to ensure that the European legislation would be met.
In addition, the EU’s Landfill Directive set stringent targets for reducing the amount of biodegradable waste sent to landfill to 75% of that produced in 1995. The Directive also made changes to the types of material that can be disposed of. To complement this strategy the UK government set recovery targets to recover value from up to 67% of waste by 2015. Similar targets have been set for recycling and composting, and there are compelling reasons. It is estimated that 90% of what we throw away in our bins is reusable. In the case of aluminum foil, for example, approximately 4.1 million miles of it goes into household waste each year, enough to wrap round the planet 164 times. But it is a material that can be recycled without loss of quality and the process can save up 95% of the energy used to produce aluminum from virgin materials. Indeed, if we all reduced the weight of our household bins by 10% in a year this would prevent waste equivalent to 4300 times the height of the Eiffel Tower ending up in landfill.
Policing the regulations
These are all good, common-sense regulations, you would argue. But what happens when the individuals charged with policing the regulations turn rotten? After all, it only takes one bad apple.
With the environment now at the top of the global political agenda, and local authorities tasked with policing all rubbish disposal – from recycling bins to dumping – legitimate waste management is an ever growing concern within our industry.
Now, millions of tonnes of waste are collected across the UK every week, all of it designated for recycling or disposal in either landfill or by incineration. Indeed, the volume of waste produced in one hour in the UK could fill Madison Square Gardens, while in one day it would swamp the Olympic Bird’s Nest Stadium in Beijing 10 times over.
For these millions of tonnes of waste, equating to 1.2 tonnes per UK household, there are millions of pounds worth of waste contracts that are tendered by private operators to remove the rubbish and the headache of its correct disposal. While companies do all they can to make sure the correct amount and type of waste is collected, the increased number of regulations and measures can make it difficult to account for the unscrupulous drivers and crew who turn a blind eye to sharp practices which are both illegal, and dangerous in some cases – such as the unlawful disposal of hazardous chemicals – in return for cash payments.
In the UK, one national waste management company’s legal department, based in Manchester, has taken a more proactive approach to this problem. Having its suspicions roused that the amount of waste being disposed of in local authority tips was inaccurate, it investigated ‘whispers’ within the business and audited its output compared to the waste being deposited. The figures did not tally, with considerably more being disposed of than allowed. Vehicle Tachographs and GPS trackers were also inaccurate as drivers were suspected of travelling off their allocated routes to pick up unauthorized commercial rubbish for private profit.
It investigated this ‘black economy’ further by engaging the services of IRC Security. The company’s forensic
 |
| Niall Burns, managing director of IRC Security |
Although all of the drivers and crew were disciplined and, where appropriate, dismissed for gross misconduct, it is believed this is the tip of a larger illegal waste disposal iceberg operating not only in the UK, but overseas. Since the success of this operation IRC Security has been engaged on behalf of a number of other waste recycling operator companies in the UK and has discovered wider-scale abuse.
It is a problem for all waste operators because there is profit to be had from illicit tipping. It only takes the companies concerned to audit what they remove and dispose of, to realize that the figures do not always match with what has been agreed with the local authority.
At worst this could result in a good company losing a lucrative contract because of a few bad apples, and at worst some innocent worker or member of the public being injured by handling hazardous material that should not be included in domestic waste.
 |
| Household waste being loaded illegally. |
Acids, asbestos and other noxious materials can cause short-term breathing difficulties or skin burns with greater risk of health issues if people are exposed to them for a prolonged length of time. Electrical equipment that has not been disposed of in accordance with WEEE regulations, and simply resold onto an unsuspecting member of the public, could cause problems it could have been dumped for a very good reason, like a serious electrical fault.
 |
Building materials being unloaded ready to dump. |
Companies like IRC Security work closely with clients to get a full understanding of their requirements and aims, before starting on each case. IRC often liaises with HR and legal departments, as inevitably the evidence gathered will be utilized in an employment tribunal or criminal legal case. The company has had to learn how to legally obtain and present evidence within the framweork of the UK Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE), which is fully admissible in court. Without this depth of knowledge and understanding, cases painstakingly pushed through the courts could be built but then summarily dismissed as not robust enough.
International waste security
With the threat of international terrorism noted, the safe disposal of waste materials is of great interest to the security community and all governments. Harmful and dangerous substances are disposed of all the time and can even include nuclear materials, such as spent plutonium rods and the like, that in the wrong hands would literally cost the earth.
 |
| No sitting on the fence; an illegal entry to a waste site caugtht on a covert night-time camera |
This kind of security requires in-depth knowledge of counter-terrorism strategies and years of experience working in the theatre of war. Many countries are not as regulated and as controlled as those in the developed world and access to armament dumps may not be such an issue.
 |
| A tipper seeking to unload chemical waste |
International environmental campaigners have shown us all how easy it is to access so-called tight security waste management sites. At the end of the day, we are all on the same side in terms of trying to make the planet safe, and keep hazardous nuclear materials out of the hands of those who would undermine freedom and human life. As a result of this constant threat security measures must be assessed regularly to maintain the highest standards of protection.
Niall Burns is managing director of IRC Security. See ircsecurity.co.uk, or call +44 (0)845 3132278
e-maill: niall.burns@ircsceurity.co.uk
IRC - a waste security case study
IRC provides a range of services to help prevent and control waste crimes. It specializes in covert investigations with 90% of its operatives being recruited from British Special Forces units and offers a consultancy service, from simple advice to full security reviews, audits and physical penetration testing of sites. From this IRC is able to highlight weaknesses and make recommendations to enhance security. Where requested, IRC can write and assist in the implementation of the company security strategy for the site.
Diesel theft
IRC has been employed on several occasions where the waste management client has suspected theft of diesel from their sites. Operations can take several forms which include covert physical observations or, where a longer term operation is required, the use of covert cameras, video transmitters and recording devices which can be utilized to obtain the required evidence. With modern technical advances it is possible to covertly place or secrete cameras into a given location and monitor the information from up to three miles from the site.
Electrical appliances being re-sold
IRC has also been used to investigate staff recycling electrical and electronic items such as flat screen monitors and computers. The normal practice is for staff to intercept these items when they are handed into recycling establishments. While this may seem harmless, the fact of the matter is these items are then sold on for cash payments and find their way into car boot sales or outlets selling second hand equipment, without any safety checks being carried out. Should someone purchase this equipment, get injured or worse, after the item had been ‘scrapped’, it is the waste management company that would carry the responsibility. IRC
counters this type of activity with the aid of physical surveillance and covert trackers attached to items, which are then handed into the recycling station.
Unauthorized use of company vehicles
IRC has operated on cases where unscrupulous site managers utilize a company vehicle for personal reasons, or have even been known to arrange a deal with a rival company to rent a client’s vehicle on periods such as weekends when the site is not operating. This is normally counteracted with the use of manned physical surveillance on the client’s site to monitor the use of vehicles. It would also normally involve the use of a covert tailing element where a vehicle moving off the site is followed to gain further evidence.
Unauthorized tipping at clients’ facilities
Again, this is a major part of IRC’s business because of the ever-rising cost of disposing of waste. There are large cash back-hand payments to be obtained by unscrupulous weighbridge operators or site managers. We have collected evidence that people will allow vehicles to bypass the weighbridge for cash payments. Not only does this significantly reduce the client’s profits, but there are very limited controls on what is actually being tipped, which create both environmental and health and safety issues. The activity is normally contracted with the use of covert and overt CCTV, and random spot check periods of covert manned observations over several days, where all movements to and from the site are both filmed and logged. Once the evidence has been gathered it is collated against the actual work tickets for the site where any illegal movements are highlighted.
