{youtube}https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxzQK-bkd2g{/youtube}
A man working for a waste management company in Spain was filmed by a colleague fly-tipping a fridge freezer by throwing it down a ravine from the side of the road.
After the video went viral, Spanish police tracked him down and he ended up having to explain his actions in court. The outcome was a costly one; he ended up being fined €45,000 (roughly £41,500) for the offence and was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge as well as forking out for the prosecution’s costs.
The colleague who filmed the ‘recycling’ stunt can be heard saying “We’re going to recycle it, let’s see how many flips it will do” as the man lifts the fridge over the barrier and pushes it down the slope.
Re-recycling
Unfortunately for the man and his friend, they were also ordered to drag the fridge freezer back up the ravine to dispose of it in the correct way. The man was sacked from his job by the waste management company he worked for, who oddly enough, specialised in the recycling of domestic electronic items and white goods like fridges and washing machines. According to reports, when an inspection was carried out at the company, there were dozens of fridges and washing machines on the premises, without any kind of containers to put them in. Furthermore, the owners of the company weren’t able to provide any evidence to show that they had sent any of them to a 3rd party recycling facility in the last 10 years.
After the incident, the man said that he regretted his actions as it had cost him his job and added to the anxiety he was already suffering.
The recycling problem of fridges and freezers
Both fridges and freezers are costly to dispose of. The reason for this is that older models contain Chloro-Fluorocarbon (CFC), more commonly known as Freon, while newer models contain Tetrafluoroethane; both of these chemicals are what make your fridge cold but both are harmful to the environment. Not only that, fridges and freezers also contain plastic and non-flammable insulation materials that all need to be disposed of correctly. Chucking them over a cliff isn’t the answer!
Fly-tipping in Sussex
We’ve written about fly-tipping before, so as a quick reminder, don’t forget that there’s a handy App whereby you can photograph rubbish that’s been fly-tipped and report it to Lewes & Eastbourne Council. The app can also be used to report:
- Graffiti
- Dog fouling
- Dangerous items or equipment
- Playground damage
- Issues with trees, parks and other green spaces
More about fly-tipping
If you’d like to know more about the issue, we’ve also written about how you can be prosecuted for dumping your rubbish in your own garden and you can also read about the burdensome cost of clearing up the rubbish that gets illegally dumped in and around the Eastbourne and Lewes area.
Oh… before you go
Don’t forget that we’re on hand to legally clear your rubbish in most parts of Sussex, including Eastbourne and Lewes but please bear in mind that our Environment Agency licensed doesn’t cover the collection of fridges or freezers, we suggest contacting your local authority to arrange disposal of these particular items.