The London Assembly has warned that Londoners could wake up this weekend to discover dangerous or toxic waste at the end of their road.
The warning comes as an EU directive banning British methods of hazardous waste disposal comes into force this Friday and amidst feats that it will lead to a significant increase in fly tipping of hazardous waste.
London produces 1/2 million tonnes of waste each year – enough to fill the new Wembley stadium – and disposal costs are set to rise by 200-300 per cent. With this huge financial incentive for illegal disposal, unscrupulous businesses will dump waste wherever they like.
Darren Johnson AM, Chair of the Environment Committee said: “I welcome this EU directive. However because of the Government’s failure to prepare properly, London will see a massive increase in fly tipping, some of which will be highly dangerous material such as asbestos. The Mayor and the Police must make this a priority in order to help the Environment Agency and London’s boroughs tackle this problem.”
