Latest news with #hazardouswaste
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Travellers left ‘potentially hazardous' POO at park to fester in 30C heat…the smell was ‘unbearable'
"POTENTIALLY hazardous" waste including poo and used bog roll was allegedly left to fester at a park in 30C heat by travellers. Locals living near the Hough Ends Fields in Chorlton, Manchester, have complained of unbearable smells following the encampment. 9 9 9 It comes as a large traveller encampment was evicted from the playing fields last Friday - with the city council then posting signs reading: "Potentially Hazardous Waste Do Not Enter. "Cleaning will be commencing as soon as possible." The authority also taped off a vast area of woodland with the same "do not enter" signs in place. Around 30 caravans had pitched up from June 12 for eight days with residents and dog walkers horrified at the level of filth and muck spread around. The pitches invaded by the Travellers are used by rugby union team Broughton Park FC. One 80-year-old walking her dog Sky told The Sun: "It was disgusting. Dirty toilet paper just blowing about, nappies and sanitary towels. "One pick-up truck just raced onto the field and missed my dog Sky by just inches – they have no respect and don't seem to care. "They left a pile of cuttings from trees and garden waste down the other end and that needed clearing away. "The smell was absolutely horrendous." International business student Conor Gregory, 22, who lives nearby, hails originally from Appleby in Cumbria - which hosts the annual Horse Fair every June. Shops close down and streets patrolled by cops as thousands of travellers gear up for 2nd day of Appleby Horse Fair Conor added: "It has got a lot worse more recently." Shopworker Kyra Crump, 18, said: "The litter and mess and other filth is just appalling. They obviously have no common decency – otherwise they would clear it all up themselves. "If you go out you have to watch where you are walking as there is so much waste on the floor. "People were posting images of just how disgusting it was. "They don't care about the local community at all. One minute they are here and the next they are gone." 9 9 9 Games host Connie Harphand, 25, who has a flat overlooking the playing fields, said: "It was a shock waking up one morning and seeing them all there. "My flat mate sent me a video of the antics and we had vans and police cars ever day. "We probably had 30 or so caravans and they were just driving through an entrance they had made for themselves on the main road." A 59-year-old handyman, from Altrincham, who works in the area, but declined to be named, told The Sun: "I've worked around here for 25 years and they have been turning up more in recent years. "Some of the people I work for are very appalled that it's happening so much – they fear it will have an impact on property prices and want the council to keep them out." The city council has confirmed it has blocked access to sections of Hough End Playing Fields, for the clean up and a vast skip stands on the path with all the tapes and warning signs now removed along with the waste. A council spokesperson said the waste was found after a "traveller encampment" was "evicted" from the Fields last Friday (June 20). A statement read: "An encampment of travellers was evicted from Hough End Playing Fields on Friday, June 20. 'The site was assessed and re-secured and an initial clean-up operation to remove a huge quantity of waste was undertaken. "The removal of the remaining waste by our contractor Biffa has started today to ensure that this part of Hough End is re-opened and accessible for residents once again.' The statement from the authority added it will investigate security for the park. The spokesperson continued: 'We continuously review our site security and we will work with the rugby club to see how we can both better secure this site for the future." The council spent millions on a controversial expansion of the Fields' leisure centre that opened in 2022, with campaigners arguing building car parks and artificial sports pitches on the grass was bad for the environment. The Sun has contacted Greater Manchester Police for comment. 9 9 9
CBS News
a day ago
- Automotive
- CBS News
Electric-powered scooter catches fire inside garbage truck cargo hold
An electric-powered scooter caught fire in the garbage truck after it was left out for the trash, the Troy (Michigan) Police Department reported. Thursday's incident required the response the Troy Fire Department and the help of Oakland County Hazmat Team to safely remove and dispose of the battery pack. Police said the fire began when the garbage truck compacted the load. That step damaged the scooter's lithium-ion battery, causing it to overheat and catch fire. "Never throw lithium-ion batteries (like those in scooters, e-bikes, tools, or phones) in the trash. They can cause fires and are dangerous when crushed or damaged," the police report said. "Please recycle batteries properly at a local hazardous waste facility."
Al Jazeera
a day ago
- Health
- Al Jazeera
War and Waste in Gaza
In Gaza, if civilians are not killed by bombings or attacks, they're killed by diseases caused by hazardous Jazeera's digital investigation team, Sanad, captures just how widespread waste sites are across Gaza, highlighting an environmental and health risk brought on by the war.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Veolia Expands U.S. Hazardous Waste Treatment Leadership Through Strategic Acquisitions and Organic Growth
Acquisition of three leading U.S. hazardous waste management companies, located in Massachusetts and California A decisive step in the company's ambition to double the size of its North America business, with a focus on hazardous waste treatment, one of the boosters of GreenUp BOSTON, June 26, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Veolia, the world leader in hazardous waste treatment with 5b$ in this activity, patented technologies and a worldwide presence, today announced actions to expand its hazardous waste treatment and disposal business in North America through investment, acquisitions and capacity expansion. The company announced c.$350 million (€300m) in global investments worldwide, including three new U.S. acquisitions in Massachusetts and California and reaffirmed plans to expand existing facilities. As reshoring drives the growth of US manufacturing industries and medical technologies continue to advance, hazardous waste treatment and disposal capacity must anticipate this demand. Veolia's global leadership in hazardous waste management allows the company to meet these needs, ensure environmental security for communities, and provide safe, proven solutions for industrial hazardous waste. Veolia Acquires Three Leading Hazardous Waste Providers In Massachusetts, the company has acquired New England Disposal Technologies and New England MedWaste. With these acquisitions, Veolia now operates the state's only permitted medical waste disposal facility, as well as two of the state's three permitted household hazardous waste disposal sites. The acquisitions also expand Veolia's leadership in serving the Massachusetts healthcare and life science industries. In California, the company has acquired Ingenium, a leading waste management service firm specializing in packaging, transportation, recycling and disposal of hazardous, non-hazardous, biological, universal and radioactive waste. This builds on a prior strategic partnership between the two companies to lock in guaranteed high-temperature treatment capacity for customers at Veolia incinerators. A vast and powerful network of infrastructure in the US, including a state-of-the-art thermal treatment facility to start up in Arkansas Veolia, which owns six high-temperature incinerators at three sites in the United States (Port Arthur, TX – Gum Springs, AR – Sauget, IL) also gave an update on the expansion of its unique high temperature hazardous waste treatment facility in Gum Springs, Ark., which has been undergoing a multi-year expansion that will make it one of the most technologically advanced and environmentally sustainable facilities of its kind in the world. When the facility starts up, it will progressively bring new permitted incineration capacity to the market, much of it already contracted as part of long-term agreements. The new incinerator design incorporates energy recovery to produce power for the site and therefore is subject to the EPA's recycling designation of H050 for wastes received for treatment. This designation, coupled with the multiple environmental awards already received by the project, further reinforces Veolia's position as a provider of environmentally sustainable waste management solutions. This ability to turn waste into a resource and to design facilities that are both essential for the regions and increasingly virtuous perfectly aligns with the ambitions set out in Veolia's strategic GreenUp program, which aims to depollute, decarbonize, and preserve resources. In addition to these state-of-the-art high temperature incinerators, Veolia also owns 49 transport and transfer platforms in 29 states as well as significant capacities for the recycling of liquid hazardous waste and electronic waste. Thanks to this wide range of solutions and facilities, the Group is able to efficiently meet the growing needs of local industrial players. Bob Cappadona, President and Chief Executive Officer of Veolia's North American Environmental Solutions and Services business said: "Our team is proud to be at the forefront of Veolia's plans to lead the hazardous waste industry, by investing in growth, expanded capacity and new environmental technologies. The teams at New England Disposal Technologies, New England MedWaste and Ingenium are outstanding performers and are aligned with our GreenUp strategy, our purpose-driven and our customer-centric approach. Together we are positioned to make a real difference for the industry and the planet." Estelle Brachlianoff, CEO of Veolia said this week during a thematic event on the subject of hazardous waste organized in northern France at one of the largest high-temperature incinerators in Europe: "Hazardous waste treatment is becoming a strategic bottleneck for many industries, especially those undergoing transformation or reshoring production. It's also an essential topic for human health and ensuring environmental security. By reinforcing our footprint through both organic investment and acquisition, we are positioning Veolia to remain ahead of the curve. Our global presence, the combination of our expertise, innovative technologies, and ability to scale rapidly enable us to deliver tailored, high-value-added services, while accelerating time-to-market for innovative waste treatment solutions." ABOUT VEOLIA IN NORTH AMERICA A subsidiary of Veolia group, Veolia North America (VNA) is the top-ranked environmental company in the United States for three consecutive years, and the country's largest private water operator and technology provider as well as hazardous waste and pollution treatment leader. It offers a full spectrum of water, waste, and energy management services, including water and wastewater treatment, commercial and hazardous waste collection and disposal, energy consulting and resource recovery. VNA helps commercial, industrial, healthcare, higher education, and municipality customers throughout North America. Headquartered in Boston, Mass., Veolia North America has more than 10,000 employees working at more than 350 locations across the continent. ABOUT VEOLIA GROUP Veolia Group aims to become the benchmark company for ecological transformation. Present on five continents with 215,000 employees, the Group designs and deploys useful, practical solutions for the management of water, waste and energy that are contributing to a radical turnaround of the current situation. Through its three complementary activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, to preserve available resources and to renew them. In 2024, the Veolia Group provided 111 million inhabitants with drinking water and 98 million with sanitation, produced 42 million megawatt hours of energy and treated 65 million tonnes of waste. Veolia Environnement (Paris Euronext: VIE) achieved consolidated revenue of 44.7 billion euros in 2024. View source version on Contacts VEOLIA IN NORTH AMERICA Nate Pepper Vice President, Communications Sign in to access your portfolio
The Independent
3 days ago
- The Independent
Hazardous waste among 30,000 tonnes of rubbish dumped in woods linked to organised crime
A monumental clean-up operation has commenced in Kent to remove 30,000 tonnes of hazardous waste illegally dumped in a woodland in Kent. The extensive effort at Hoad's Wood in Ashford, coordinated by the Environment Agency, is expected to take a year to complete. The vast quantities of harmful material, which first appeared in 2023, a re piled up to 15ft high in some areas of the woodland. Much of the discarded refuse, comprising household and construction waste, had already undergone mechanical treatment, with the Environment Agency noting "pockets of hazardous waste" within the mounds. The illegal dumping has prompted a significant criminal investigation, with three arrests made in February this year. Authorities are pursuing a "significant number" of lines of inquiry as they continue to probe the organised crime links behind the environmental devastation. This week marked the loading of the first lorries with the contaminated material, destined for safe disposal facilities, signalling the start of the extensive removal process. Emma Viner, enforcement and investigations manager at the Environment Agency, said: 'Today marks an important step in the journey of bringing Hoad's Wood back as a sanctuary for both wildlife and people.' The clean-up operation is reportedly expected to cost up to £15 million. Hoad's Wood has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest by Natural England and is home to rare plants and wildlife which may struggle to recover after the waste is removed. Ian Rickards, area manager at Kent Wildlife Trust, told the PA news agency: 'The habitat that's there is destroyed and lost but … it is possible to create a habitat within there which will work with the woodland and have some benefit to wildlife.' So far 170 trees have had to be cut down because of the polluted soil at the site. Mr Rickards said that buzzards, foxes, badgers and deer, along with fungi, wild flowers and invertebrates, have all suffered from the illegal dumping. He continued: 'There's only one direction to go really from this, you can't … it shouldn't really be able to get any worse, hopefully lessons have been learnt because what would (be) worse is if this happens somewhere else.' Nature minister Mary Creagh said the Government is 'determined' to crack down on waste criminals. The lorries which began their work this week are likely to keep running until Christmas. After Christmas, the Environment Agency and contracted waste services company, Acumen, will assess how much of the perimeter of the site has also been damaged. There was concern amongst workers as to what will happen to the site when the clean-up is finished and the agency's court order allowing them to control the site expires. Ms Viner said: 'The Environment Agency aren't the landowners here at Hoad's Wood but we are supporting conversations between different parties to look at the future. 'So, we're not just going to walk away, we are involved in supporting those conversations and will be going forward.' Mr Rickards said he was concerned that the Environment Agency could walk away from the site without setting a clear path for its future. 'I'm hoping the Environment Agency and the other agencies' goal here is to restore this woodland as best as possible,' he said.
