maybe spain garbage collector from the south of france If the transfer of trucks crossing our borders, including Irún in Gipuzkoa, with untreated urban waste (some of it hazardous) from French municipalities, especially for burial in landfills in Aragon, continues.
Although the data are estimates, random checks by Spanish and French security forces give the following result: One in three trucks stopped at the Spanish border is carrying illegal waste.
To prevent this from happening, or at least reduce it, the Civil Guard and the French Gendarmerie launched the joint Augias operation in 2022. cross-border control of waste tradePaying special attention to Irun (Gipuzkoa).
Commander Carlos Astráin from the Seprona Central Operational Environmental Unit (UCOMA) spoke to Efe about this issue. Efe reminded that the purpose of this device is to obtain information that will result in the initiation of more specific investigations.
There have already been some cases called ‘Poubelle’ reported by the Civil Guard last month. Dismantling a criminal organization that would net 16 million euros Since 2020, after French waste collection companies hired their services to get rid of them and bury them in a landfill in Zaragoza.
It’s a sweet job
Why is fetching such a sweet job? garbage -untreated or separated- What do the French throw into the containers of their municipalities in the Bordeaux region, the Côte d’Azur or the French Basque Country?
The explanation is simple. In France, the management, i.e. processing and disposal of one ton of urban waste costs 250 euros, including 50 euros tax. In Spain this costs 40 euros including taxes.
Therefore, organized groups that see a vein in this illegal activity, The accounts come out very well.These are: In France, a truck carrying 20 tonnes of waste will pay 5,000 euros including taxes to manage it (20 tonnes for 250 euros each).
In Spain the cost is about $800 (20 tons for 40 euros each).
Organized groups have found this illegal activity to be an economic boon as it brings them huge benefits.
Removal is easy. If the cost of fuel and the driver’s salary are deducted, researchers say criminal organizations They can make a profit of just over 3,000 euros per truck. If 10 to 20 vehicles enter per day, the benefit will range from 30,000 to 60,000 euros per day.
This is a downward calculation. Because, as Astráin explained, in the Augias operation, during the checks carried out by the Gendarmerie and Civil Guard several times a year for three days, It was reported that 35 to 45 of every 120 trucks stopped by agents were carrying untreated waste.
As confirmed in these checks, the region with the highest influx of trucks is the Irun border.
Hidden behind the first layer of “legal” waste
According to the investigations, the identified ‘mode of operation’ reveals the existence of interconnected French and Spanish companies (in this case primarily based in Catalonia and Aragon) to carry out this illegal activity through apparently legal methods.
In the case of France, these are companies with concessions for the collection of household waste, which, in cooperation with other Spanish companies, transport urban waste into our country without first managing it, which can include everything from paint to paint. boxes, batteries, solvents, cleaning products etc… Some are very poisonous.
Domestic waste collection companies, in cooperation with other Spanish companies, transport urban waste to our country without managing it.
Astráin reminds Efe: Spanish and European legislation prohibits the entry of such waste into Spain from other countries.In accordance with the principle that each country must fend for itself.
Yes, those already receiving treatment can enter, so criminal organizations pretend to be so and provide the relevant documents.
To make everything look legal and to pass the checks if they are compromised, The first layers of the load are non-hazardous wasteSubstances that are transported as if they were classified, such as paper or cardboard, and can therefore be buried in landfill in Spain. In other cases these are construction waste. But, Untreated urban waste is hidden beneath these layers.
In any case, if they are discovered, it is the relevant autonomous community that must impose the relevant administrative sanction. However, this fine, although large, does not overshadow this lucrative business currently in the hands of criminal groups.
Environmental problem for Spain, financial problem for France
For Spain, this activity represents a major environmental problem. Burying tons of untreated waste, as in the Zaragoza landfill, It can cause serious damage to ecosystems and the health of the population. close to these facilities.
There are already examples of health harm caused by similar activities in Italy.
For France, the problem is financial. Due to the large amount of euros entering their coffers if these companies avoid paying taxes.
The Civil Guard, and especially Seprona, made the fight against waste smuggling one of their priorities, as did the French Gendarmerie.
Because crimes against the environment, including waste smuggling, are currently the fourth most important criminal activity in the world, after drug trafficking, human smuggling and counterfeiting.
According to recent research, only in the European Union andIllegal waste smuggling generates between 4,000 and 15,000 million euros per year.
………….
Contact address of the environmental department:[email protected]