Fire Safety Hazard Leads To £50,000 Fine For Waste Firm Director

Essex wood treatment firm, Prime Biomass Ltd created a huge fire safety risk to the local community by storing more than double the agreed limit of wood waste.

A jury at the Old Bailey returned unanimous guilty verdicts against two directors of an illegal waste wood operation in Essex. One director was ordered to pay £50,000 in fines, compensation and legal costs while the other faces a five-year ban as a company director. A third director was acquitted by a majority verdict.

five-week trial

The hearing follows a five-week trial at the Old Bailey back in October and November 2018. In May 2020 the Court of Appeal upheld convictions against two of the directors, Breslin and Mustafa, which delayed the sentencing until this month.

The Environment Agency prosecuted the three directors for storing and treating waste wood in excess of the 500-ton limit allowed by the waste exemption they had registered-causing substantial dust contamination to neighboring businesses, a fire risk to the local environment and passing on the costs to the landowner by abandoning the waste.

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Further visits to the site revealed an increase in illegal activity with even more waste on site"

Ruth Shaw, case officer from the Environment Agency said: “We visited the site on numerous occasions, but the defendants continued to ignore our advice on how to comply with their exemption and run a site within the rules. Further visits to the site revealed an increase in illegal activity with even more waste on site, causing a serious fire risk and dust nuisance to the neighboring community.”

DSEAR risk assessments

Prime Biomass Ltd was allowed to treat or store no more than 500 tons of waste wood in any seven-day period at their site. When Environment Agency officers visited the site in September 2013 the site contained 1200 tons of waste wood which was in breach of the agreed exemption.

By February 2014 Prime Biomass Ltd was in liquidation. The directors had abandoned the site where the waste wood remained until late 2018 when the site and other surrounding land were sold for redevelopment. The FPA can provide specialist consultants to conduct comprehensive DSEAR risk assessments for organization.