A Dublin waste company which claimed to have complied fully with its waste licences was previously prosecuted for non-compliance by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), it has emerged.
The EPA says it has initiated a further prosecution against the company.
Swalcliffe Ltd, trading as Dublin Waste Removal, said in a statement at the weekend "the organisation complies fully with all licensing and regulatory requirements".
This statement was issued after the company found a small part of hospital refuse dumped in Co Wicklow may have been disposed of by a sub-contractor. Investigations are continuing and the EPA's prosecutions are not linked to this incident.
In a statement yesterday, the EPA said it "successfully prosecuted Swalcliffe Ltd for non-compliance with the conditions of their waste licences at the Dublin Metropolitan District Court on February 27th, 2001".
"Swalcliffe Ltd, who pleaded guilty to three charges of non-compliance with their waste licence, was fined £500 on each charge," the statement continued.
"In summary, the charges were in relation to three specific conditions of the waste licence: keeping no waste records, disposal at a waste facility not agreed with the EPA, and failure to keep a record of nuisance inspections. Costs were awarded to the EPA.
"Compliance with the waste licence did not improve substantially following the successful prosecution.
"The EPA has initiated a further prosecution against Swalcliffe Ltd and a prosecution against each of the company's directors in relation to ongoing non-compliance with a number of conditions of the waste licence. This case is listed for hearing on November 13th, 2001, at the Dublin Metropolitan District Court".
Swalcliffe Ltd was unavailable for comment last night.
The EPA said it granted the company, which has an address at 116 Sheriff Street Upper, a waste licence on June 9th, 2000.
Waste from the company's facility can be sent only to licensed or permitted waste facilities which have been agreed with the EPA.
As regards the illegal dump in Co Wicklow, the company said results of an inquiry by the company "appear to indicate a driver, employed by a firm sub-contracted by Swalcliffe Ltd, may have responsible for a small part of the dumped materials. The driver has been dismissed".
Domestic hospital waste, including body fluid bags, bloody bandages and swabs, was found at the site in the Glen of Imaal.
In the statement about the Co Wicklow dump, Mr Louis Moriarty, the company's managing director, said: "The findings did come as a great shock to the firm. However, I believe the speed with which we responded to events demonstrates our lack of tolerance for poor industry standards".
In a separate issue, the EPA said waste was deposited at a facility in Blackditch, Nurney, Co Kildare.