Customs to repatriate last batch of controversial waste containers to UK

Sri Lanka Customs will repatriate the last batch of the controversial 263 container loads of garbage to the United Kingdom from the Colombo Port today.

Accordingly, 45 containers of waste lying at the Colombo Port will be repatriated under the supervision of the Customs Social Protection Unit.

The Customs in early 2019 detected the waste containers, which had been imported by falsely declaring them as extract metal from used mattresses for re-export purposes.  

The Court of Appeal on October 14, 2020, ordered the Central Environment Authority to send all freight containers with garbage which were shipped to Sri Lanka, back to the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Hayleys Free Zone Ltd. In a statement said that the waste material was exported from UK to Sri Lanka, on behalf of the ultimate consignee M/s Ceylon Metal Corporation Pvt Ltd and has now been re-exported to the UK.

The Company which imported the waste material to Sri Lanka said that it has acted purely as the logistics service provider for the party who imported the cargo and had no involvement with the waste cargo apart from acting as a pure service provider.(Darshana Sanjeewa Balasuriya)

Pix by Pradeep Dilrukshana