Soria, Spain - 28 September 2016: The owner of a recycling company has been sentenced to two years’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to the illegal handling of electronic and toxic waste and releasing ozone-depleting and global warming refrigerants into the atmosphere. The man was also ordered to pay a daily fee during an eight-month period and received a three-year ban from working in the recycling industry.
The sentence came about thanks to an investigation by the Environmental Protection Unit of the Civil Guards (SEPRONA) – previously recognised by UN Environment with an award.
The illegal activity had been taking place since July 2013. As a result of the investigation, 600 electronic items including 203 refrigerators were confiscated at the demand of the specialized Public Prosecutor. The investigation also found that over 40 kg of mercury compounds had been dumped into the soil, and that the chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) refrigerants R11 and R12 had been released into the atmosphere, accounting for at least 331 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents. Other toxic substances such as lead, cadmium and zinc were also found on the company’s premises.
In January 2015, the representative of the Public Prosecutor´s Office for the Protection of the Environment in Soria discovered significant amounts of electronic waste, along with other toxic substances, on the premises of the recycling company, near Soria. SEPRONA discovered that the company was only authorized to recycle non-dangerous waste, not electronic or toxic waste. Scientific support for the investigation was provided by the technical unit of the Public Prosecutor´s Office.
This decision by Soria’s Criminal Court is the most recent in a series of similar decisions by Spanish Courts on the illegal release of CFCs into the atmosphere. In October 2016, the Public Prosecutor´s Office submitted another case to the Court in Madrid, in which 60 kg of hydrochloroflurocarbon R22 – another ozone-depleting and global warming refrigerant – had been offered for sale online. A one and a half year prison sentence and a daily fee during an 18-month period were demanded.
Earlier this year, the Public Prosecutor Office for the Protection of the Environment and SEPRONA received UN Environment’s Ozone Protection Award for Customs & Enforcement Officers for their commitment and persistence in combating environmental crime. It is the second time that they received this award.
For more information please contact UN Environment OzonAction: ozonaction@unep.org
