Subsequent to the BBC File on 4 report, the legal campaign group, Fighting Dirty, claims to have secured a major victory after receiving a letter from the Environment Agency (EA) committing to undertake a review of its approach to waste tyre shipments in response to a threat of court proceedings
The Uk’s Tyre Recovery Association, and Tyre and Rubber Recycling have highlighted the issue of waste tyre exports to India for over a decade. Environment Agency speakers at the TRA’s annual Forum since at least 2016 have been aware of the challenges and the issues around waste tyre exports and the abuse of the T8 Exemption. However, successive Ministers at DeFRA have failed to ensure that action was taken to deal with the root cause of the issue. The T8 abusers undermining bona fide recycling operations.
Of course, the issue runs deeper than just the T8 problem, but that is where the UK could start on ensuring that our waste tyres go to approved recycling rather than illegal pyrolysis plants.
Campaign group- Fighting Dirty claims to have been in correspondence with the EA to uncover the extent of the agency’s knowledge of the 55 million waste tyres exported from the UK to India, most of which end up in illegal pyrolysis plants where they cause massive pollution and suffering.
The BBC report on the waste tyres going to India, prompted Fighting Dirty to make a legal challenge to the Environment Agency.
In their response dated 25th March, the EA states that it intends to conduct an internal review of its approach to waste tyre shipments, talking to industry, domestic and foreign trade associations, the Indian government and other public authorities.
It is anticipated that this review will take three months, and Fighting Dirty has been invited to meet with the agency to present its concerns.
David Wolfe KC of Matrix, representing Fighting Dirty, said; “Let’s hope that the EA’s review leads to proper scrutiny of the way in which old tyres are recycled. None of us wants to see them sent abroad to be burnt in a way which is harmful to the environment and local communities.”
Peter Taylor, Secretary General of the TRA commented; “The Environment Agency’s assertion that over the past three years all of its inspections of waste tyre shipments to India were destined for recovery by shredding is barely credible given repeated warnings to the contrary by the TRA and others and now, the sheer scale of abuse exposed by the BBC. Nevertheless, news that the EA will at last review its approach to waste tyre shipments following the BBC’s clear corroboration of a situation we have long tried to expose can only be welcomed, however late in the day.”
