A COUNCIL contractor ignored the rules when deadly asbestos was buried on a city nature reserve.
Instead of disposing of the asbestos correctly, the Enterprise employee shoved it into the ground at Alney Island.
He has since been relieved of his position and the fibrous material was dug up.
Barry Leach, from Gloucester City Centre Community Partnership, said: "I am disappointed an employee feels cutting corners is the way to do things. I hope measures are put in place to ensure it doesn't happen again."
Enterprise workers were called to the site in July after 20 travellers left tonnes of rubbish.
Among the waste was roof tiles from what is believed to be a garden shed. These contained asbestos.
Strict regulations surround the disposal of the substance, which is responsible for 4,000 deaths a year.
But although asbestos particles pose a serious risk to humans if inhaled, they do not pose a problem when in the ground.
It is still an offence to bury asbestos under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. It must be sent to licenced dealers. When being dug up, it can release the dangerous fibres.
Unfortunate
Keith Rowe, general manager at Enterprise, said: "This is completely out of character, nothing like this has happened before. Procedures were not followed. It should have been bagged, collected, skipped and taken to a licensed asbestos disposal point.
"It is unfortunate they acted in this way. We have high standards and expertise in cleaning up and in Health and Safety. Once I knew what had happened we worked very swiftly to deal with the issue.
"We took action internally against the individuals for working outside the organisation's process."
It is not known when the tiles were buried, but they were removed last month.
The land is jointly-owned by both Gloucester City Council and the Environment Agency.
A spokesperson for the city council said: "The issue was quickly identified by our partner Enterprise and promptly and appropriately dealt with by them."
While a spokesperson for the Environment Agency added: "The matter was handled very quickly between Gloucester City Council and the contractor. As a landowner, we will be seeking confirmation that the asbestos was removed using the appropriate paper work and has been taken to a licenced site."
Steve Morgan, cabinet member for the environment, added: "Clearing up after travellers is a particularly unpleasant job. That does not condone what happened, but it brings home what we ask the Enterprise staff to do is often pretty unpleasant."
source: thisisgloucestershire.co.uk
