Perthshire man left with container full of 500 old bicycles in row with environment chiefs

A Perthshire man has been left stuck with a container full of more than 500 second-hand bicycles after a row with environment chiefs.

Nigel Carter, from Comrie, collects thousands of bikes every year and sends them to Africa, to help people who need access to cheap transport.

However, his latest shipment destined for war-torn Sudan was prevented from leaving the UK and returned to Nigel at Cultybraggan Camp after the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) intervened, due to concerns over the condition of some of the bicycles.

Nigel, 64, has blasted the decision as “box-ticking bureaucracy”.

Perthshire man brands Sepa bicycles row ‘ludicrous’

He said: “It’s ludicrous. I’m sending these bikes to Sudan, a place which really needs them at the moment.

“But according to Sepa, they can’t be delivered.

“Anyone can see that these bikes are perfectly fine – it’s just a case of box-ticking bureaucracy.

“What am I meant to do with them?

“I’ll probably end up having to scrap them all.”

Nigel started the venture after visiting West Africa in 2004, following his sale of the nearby Auchingarrich Wildlife Park.

He collects bikes from all over Scotland and takes them to UK-based charities, who have their pick.

The remaining bicycles are returned to Nigel, who then offers them to other organisations that distribute them to people in Africa for as little as £3.

However, Sepa now checks the shipments in an effort to avoid what it classes as waste leaving the country.

‘We’re not shipping nuclear waste’

Having left Comrie bound for Africa, the latest container full of bikes was returned to Nigel on Tuesday – when it took him three hours to unload the bicycles.

Nigel believes the main issue Sepa has with the latest shipment is “minor” rust and wheel rims without tyres.

He added: “The presence of rust on some frames is not detrimental to the bikes, it is cosmetic and superficial – these bikes will last for years and years.

“Some of the tyres have perished but Sepa knows there are hundreds of spares of board.

“We are talking about sending a few second-hand bicycles to Africa, we’re not shipping nuclear waste.

“A bit of common sense applied by Sepa would go a long way, but I’m not holding my breath.”

A spokesperson for Sepa said: “Sepa supports a more circular economy where less waste is produced.

“By conducting inspections at waste sites and ports throughout Scotland, we monitor the quality of items being exported for reuse or recycling to ensure quality and suitability.

“This way, we can ensure that Scotland’s waste does not become another country’s problem.

“Following an inspection of a container by Sepa officers, we have stopped the shipment while we ensure that it fully complies with the waste shipment regulations.

“We are corresponding with the relevant parties involved to return the container to the site of loading to allow a more detailed inspection by Sepa officers.”