Reports in the British press say that Britain is throwing out more than a million tonnes of electronic "e-waste" such as broken computer monitors and discarded mobile phones every year. A Guardian report said that last year, 23,000 tonnes of IT and other electronic equipment was shipped out illegally, mostly to China, West Africa, Pakistan and India.

It said in one instance, documents on a container waiting to be shipped from Felixstowe to Pakistan declared that its contents were innocuous plastic packaging.

But when customs officers opened it up they found tonnes of broken computer monitors and other electronic waste collected by a south Wales company, which was sending it to Lahore to be dismantled by hand for its lead and other valuable toxic contents.

The illegal shipment of hazardous waste was reportedly blocked and returned.

According to the government's pollution watchdog Environment Agency, e-waste exports are worth hundreds of millions of pounds.

Last year, such waste involved tens of thousands of old computers, 500,000 television sets, three million refrigerators, 160,000 tonnes of other electrical equipment and millions of discarded mobile phones, all sent to the poorest countries in the world.

But the Guardian report said the agency admitted it had no idea how much of the waste was being deliberately dumped on poor countries by companies trying to avoid paying increasingly high disposal costs in Britain, and how much was only technically illegal because companies filled in the forms incorrectly.

"It is not necessarily all illegal," according to an agency spokesman. "There is a legitimate international trade in goods, with an overseas market for usable equipment such as computers and TVs. Further work will help us to find out how much is illegal. Our investigations suggest some exporters are not seeking the appropriate legal authorisation."

The report said that China and India, thought to be the target of most e-waste exports, had urged Britain and other rich countries through the UN and other international forums to stop exporting hazardous waste because they did not have the facilities to inspect all the traffic being sent.

A major investigation by an international coalition of environmental groups this year reportedly found huge quantities of e-waste being exported to China, Pakistan and India where it was being reprocessed in operations extremely harmful to both human health and the environment.

Toxiclinks, an India based information clearing house on environmental issues reported that the Environment Agency today warned companies involved in the export of electronic waste to countries like Pakistan, India and China that they must know what the rules are, comply with them, or risk prosecution by the Environment Agency.

The warning comes as the Environment Agency announces it is stepping up activity to identify illegal exports as a new report identifies some 23,000 tonnes of waste may be being shipped to non-OECD countries in the Far East, the Indian sub-continent, West Africa and China without the right authorisation from the Environment Agency.

The report was compiled on behalf of the Environment Agency by the Industry Council for Electronic Equipment Recycling (ICER) and is being used to help target investigative and enforcement work by Environment Agency officers.

Under the current rules, no waste, including electrical or electronic waste, can be sent abroad for disposal. Waste electronic equipment destined for minor repair may be exported but must first be authorised by the Environment Agency. It is illegal to send any hazardous waste, including hazardous electrical or electronic waste, to a non-OECD or developing country for disposal or recovery.

Liz Parkes, the Environment Agency's Head of Waste Regulation, said: There is a legitimate overseas market, in Europe and beyond, for used equipment such as computers and fridges. For example, there is very large demand for second hand products in China which following minor repair can be re-used. There are strict rules, however, setting out how waste electrical equipment may be exported and where it can legally be sent.

This report shows companies in England and Wales are not always following the rules or are unaware of the rules. We will tackle any illegal export activity we find and are doing so on two fronts. We have set up a special enforcement project to look at the problem in England and Wales and internationally we are working with eleven other European Member States on a project that will see inspection and enforcement stepped up at 25 ports around Europe.

The Environment Agency is cracking down on illegal waste exports by:
1. Setting up a dedicated special enforcement team that will step up the number of random inspections carried out at ports across England and Wales and prosecute offenders where there is evidence of illegal activity
2. Playing a lead role in a major European projects including Seaports involving clampdowns at 25 ports across 12 European countries
3. Working closely with both HM Customs and Excise in the UK and through the European network of regulators - IMPEL V to share information and intelligence on illegal trade in waste across the whole of Europe.
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