Warning to stop 'all illegal activity' at fire hit Slough recycling centre

Council warning notices have been handed to the landowner of a Slough recycling centre hit by two large fires in less than a month.

Slough Borough Council and the Environment Agency (EA) have also opened investigations into environmental offences and planning control breaches at the centre in Farnham Road.  

The latest flames erupted at the Greener World site in Farnham Road on Saturday (April 5) evening and firefighters spent more than a day battling to bring it under control.

A joint Thames Valley Police, council and EA statement said ‘we do not take these actions lightly’ and ‘we will not hesitate to take more formal action’.

The Greener World site is being cleared of debris (credit: Slough Borough Council)

The statement said efforts had been stepped up ‘to ensure there are no further fires on the site, by encouraging and taking action to compel the removal of all the waste on the site, quickly and safely and to stop all illegal activity from beginning again’.

Any waste processing at the site is illegal, the statement said.

The council issued its warning notices on Thursday (April 10) which said more breaches of the Anti-Social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 could result in tougher action.

Prosecution and an unlimited fine for the landowner could be pursued under a community protection notice (CPN) if more breaches of the act are reported.

The privately-owned Farnham Road site - next to the London Paddington railway line, schools and around 100 homes - sparked a 25-hour emergency service response in the last incident.

Smoke billowed from the fire through the night as firefighters worked tirelessly to douse embers still burning among the smouldering remains of rubbish debris.

Teams from Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and London fire brigades were drafted in to bring the emergency under control.

Inside the recycling centre following the fire.

Thames Valley Police officers closed part of Farnham Road between the Three Tuns junction and Whitby Road until the early hours of Sunday morning.

That blaze was the second time firefighters have been called into action at the recycling centre, following a similar six-hour fire on March 17.

The police, council and EA statement said any future fires at the site posed ‘significant’ risk to air quality and damage to ground water supplies.

It added: “We are clear the people operating on the site is not the landowner, but the landowner was, is and will continue to be liable for what takes place on his land.

“We do not take these actions lightly and we will continue to engage with the landowner and encourage efforts to clear this land and the associated risks whilst proactively working with Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service to reduce the risk of fire whilst the clean-up is taking place.

“However, we will not hesitate to take more formal action, with partners, should the landowner or the operators on the site not respond swiftly and, most importantly, safely, to limit any impact on the community from their activity.”