Waste management company, WCRS, has welcomed the Government’s proposals to crackdown on the Organised Crime Groups (OCGs) who profit from waste crime.
With waste criminals said to be costing the economy over £600m a year, the Government’s new Call for Evidence review, hopes to engage with a wide group of people to consider ways to crack-down further on OCGs.
Looking at the types of crimes being committed, the crime groups involved and the environmental, community and economic impacts, the review will consider how the Environment Agency, along with other organisations, can tackle the problem and will make recommendations for a strategic approach to serious and organised waste crime.
Robert Logan, Managing Director of WCRS, commented: “Waste criminals evade landfill tax, run illegal waste sites, fly-tip and illegally export waste and it is a sad fact that waste crime is now endemic in our country. The Government has already given local councils the power to issue on-the-spot fines for fly-tipping and granted the Environment Agency new powers to lock the gates to problem waste sites, forcing operators to clear all waste. We welcome news of this review that will further tackle this anti-social crime blighting our local communities and harming our environment.”
