Plea after gas canister sparked recycling fire

Recycling contractor Suez says there has been an increase in the number of canisters being wrongly placed in recycling collections

A warning has been issued after gas canisters were placed in recycling, one of which sparked a fire a week ago.

The blaze was at a recycling centre run by contractor Suez in Somerset which had the potential to destroy the whole site. The blaze was contained but was, the firm said, the most serious they have had so far.

In the last six months, some 1,500 canisters have been found in blue recycling bags and numbers have risen along with more people enjoying barbecues this summer.

Matthew Canning, from Suez, said: "We have had issues and fires at the recycling processing sites, caused by gas canisters and it really needs to change."

Somerset Council and the firm have issued a warning to residents not to place the canisters in recycling but take them to your local recycling centre, where residents can ask staff how best to dispose of them safely.

Speaking to BBC Radio Somerset, Phillip De Wavrin from SUEZ said: "Essentially they are being recycled within the mixed cans and plastics, unfortunately these canisters are specifically pressurised in a way that if they are punctured or crushed they can explode in a ball of fire.

"This can lead to directly to injury from an explosion or even the fires can have a deadly impact to the staff and the building."

Although last week's fire at the recycling centre is not the first caused by gas canisters, the contractor said it was the most serious and had it not been for staff acting so quickly, it could have closed down the entire facility.

Councillor Richard Wilkins, Somerset Council's Lead Member for Transport and Waste, said: "The dangers are very real as this latest incident proved.

"Collection crews are not always able to see if a canister has been put in the bright blue recycling bag and the danger comes when going through the sorting process."