8 held for smuggling toxic waste into city

The city's Custom officials said yesterday that eight people had been detained for allegedly smuggling about 6,000 tons of slag and industrial waste residue containing excessive toxins such as arsenic and cadmium from Iran into China through Shanghai.

The suspects filled in the names of zinc ores and other metals on the declaration forms, instead of slag and industrial waste residue.

The Custom officers said they found excessive levels of arsenic and cadmium in the shipments and seized the goods on March 12. The case is still under investigation.

Solid wastes including waste metal, waste plastic and waste paper can be imported into China as the county relies on them as renewable resources.

But some companies have tried to smuggle industrial waste with high toxins which pollute the environment.

By the end of March, inspectors had discovered 58 shipments, from a total of 7,903, were illegal.