Revealed: fridges crushed in bin lorries

DUBLIN City Council has been accused of disposing of fridges and freezers in a “reckless and irresponsible” manner after workers were photographed throwing the appliances into bin lorries.

Friends of the Earth said crushing fridges and freezers in this way risked the release of harmful CFC gases.

Fridges and freezers are hazardous waste under EU law. CFC gases must be removed before disposal and they cannot be dumped in a landfill.

Friends of the Earth director Oisín Coghlan said the lobby group is considering lodging a complaint with the European Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency.

He said: “It’s hard to imagine that compacting fridges in a bin lorry isn’t releasing CFCs, contrary to EU legislation. The manner in which they are collecting this rubbish is inept, reckless and irresponsible.”

Niall O’Keeffe, administrative officer for the council’s Waste Management Services, said all bulky items, particularly fridges and freezers, are supposed to be collected by a flat-bed truck, not a bin lorry.

“If a fridge was put into a refuse freighter it constitutes a breach of procedure by staff and will be dealt with appropriately,” he said.

But he said collecting fridges and freezers in bin lorries was not in breach of EU directives and that they would be “separated” from material going to landfill.

Asked how fridges and freezers could be decontaminated if they had been compacted in a bin lorry, Mr O’Keeffe said: “This happens only in exceptional circumstances and the risk of environmental pollution is minimal.”

An Environment Department spokesman said they would be “very unhappy” if the council was disposing of fridges in bin lorries. The EPA said it would investigate any complaint on the matter.

The controversy comes days before the introduction of strict laws on the disposal of fridges and freezers.