The crime gangs cashing in on illegal waste

Organised crime gangs are illegally burying thousands of tonnes of waste across Scotland, a BBC investigation has found.

Some of the rubbish is being brought up from the north of England by the gangs, and is believed to include hazardous clinical waste from hospitals.

Current affairs series Disclosure has been told that threats and intimidation are being used against landowners who refuse to allow waste to be buried on their land.

An insider from a criminal network told Disclosure that dumping waste had become as profitable as the drug trade.

Sepa, Scotland's environmental regulator, says its resources are being stretched by the gangs' activities.

The Serious and Organised Crime Taskforce has made waste crime its top priority.

1 February 2022