WEEE recycler fined £140,000 over mercury exposure
March 15th, 2010
A Glasgow-registered recycling company and a director have been fined a total of £145,000 for exposing workers to toxic mercury fumes at a site in West Yorkshire. Twenty employees had levels of mercury in their system above UK guidance levels, and five of them showed extremely high levels following the exposure between October 2007 and August 2008.
Electrical Waste Recycling Group Ltd, recycles electrical equipment, including fluorescent light tubes containing mercury and TV sets and monitors containing lead. The court heard that ventilation problems at a plant on School Lane, Kirkheaton, Huddersfield, meant employees were being exposed to potentially harmful emissions from both substances.
Several workers had reported ill health as a result of the exposure, including a pregnant worker who was concerned that her unborn baby was at risk. HSE issued five Improvement Notices and one Prohibition Notice to the company in relation to the incident.
Link to Health and Safety Executive Press Release – Yorkshire Post – Huddersfield Examiner
