Hodnet chemical dumping charges brought

Two people have been charged after dozens of barrels of lethal chemicals were allegedly illegally dumped in north Shropshire, the Environment Agency said today.

The man and a woman, both from the North West, have been charged with a total of 26 environmental offences.

It follows a major investigation into how a cocktail of dangerous chemicals was discovered in the back of a lorry found in Hodnet in May 2009.The pair were charged at Leyland Police Station and bailed to appear before Leyland Magistrates Court on January 27 2011.

Five other men, all from the north of England, remain on police bail pending further inquiries.

The charges follow an Environment Agency probe into the alleged dumping of hazardous chemicals at sites across the north.

The Environment Agency's National Environmental Crime Team officer Brian Hopkins, who is co-ordinating Operation Pandora, said: "These charges are the result of an ongoing, complex and nationwide investigation into the alleged illegal storage and disposal of hazardous waste across Lancashire, Shropshire and the North East."

The discovery of the chemicals in Shropshire sparked a full-scale eco-alert with officials closing the A53 and firefighters, wearing protective suits, entering the lorry.