Scotland's waste crime detectives feature in BBC documentary Dirty Business

A new documentary being broadcast delves into the dark world of illegal rubbish dumping in Scotland – a criminal activity that can harm people and the environment and costs the public more than £50 million a year.

Monday night’s show, part of the BBC’s Disclosure current affairs series, shines new light on criminal waste activities and the work of environmental investigators working to tackle the problem.

The programme, titled Dirty Business, follows Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) officers and their work at significant waste crime sites across the country.

One of the largest was discovered in Lochgelly, Fife, which has been described as being among the largest fly-tipping sites in Scotland.

In Port Glasgow, Renfrewshire, a derelict farm has been filled with an estimated 10,000 tyres. One barn at the site in Devol that is overflowing with tyres lies within a few metres of a housing estate. Tyres are classified as hazardous waste because of the polluting emissions they give off and their potential to catch fire.

Illegal activities include everything from fly-tipping and prohibited burning to large-scale activities with links to serious organised crime, such as illegal landfills and a recent surge in abandonment of trailer-loads of trash.

Illegal disposal of waste has a serious and detrimental impact on the environment, communities and compliant businesses, costing Scottish taxpayers an estimated £53 million in clean-up costs, avoided tax and lost revenue annually.

The work of Scotland's environmental investigators and their efforts to tackle illegal dumping of waste, often linked to serious and organised crime, is the subject of a new BBC documentary entitled Dirty Business

Such is the scale of the problem, Sepa set up a special intelligence and enforcement unit in October 2019 to help deal with a growth in such activities.

Work includes monitoring of more than 234 active cases, including 31 high-priority sites, some of which are linked to serious and organised crime.

The environmental watchdog collaborates closely on investigations with partners such as Police Scotland, the Joint Unit for Waste Crime, the Serious Organised Crime Task Force and cross-border environment agencies to share information and detect criminal activity.

Illegal waste disposal and fly-tipping carry significant penalties, with offenders risking a criminal conviction, fines and even a jail sentence.

More than 10,000 tyres have been dumped at Devol near Port Glasgow, posing a major health and safety hazard.

Sepa can also issue variable monetary penalties of up to £40,000 as an enforcement tool.

Jennifer Shearer, head of enforcement at Sepa, said: “We are warning criminals – your activities are firmly in the spotlight and compliance with Scotland’s environmental laws is non-negotiable.

“Criminals are resourceful, inventive and will find new ways to break the law, especially when money is involved, but Scotland’s enforcement agencies are working together to make sure we find them and stop them.”

Scottish justice secretary Keith Brown said: “The Scottish Government and partners on the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce are fully committed to disrupting those who see waste disposal as a money-making enterprise that sits alongside other crime types such as violence, drugs, weapons and money laundering.

The fly-tipping site in Lochgelly, Fife, is one of the worst in Scotland, say SEPA.

“These criminals will do anything to increase their wealth through undermining legitimate waste businesses and tricking unsuspecting customers.

“Partners on the taskforce will use every means at their disposal to ensure these illegal practices stop and that those who dump waste illegally are held accountable.”

The documentary shadows staff on investigations, including a site visit to an unidentified location where a criminal gang has buried large amounts of waste underground, resulting in the release of harmful gases and liquids as it degrades.

The team also accompanies Sepa staff to a non-compliant site and to a legitimate waste operator, to see how businesses should be working to stay within the law.

The show reveals how criminals undercutting proper waste disposal protocols are impacting businesses and the industry.

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