Explosion company charged

Locals have been campaigning for the plant to close for five years

A chemical processing company has been charged with health and safety offences after a major explosion damaged its plant.

A fire and a number of explosions devastated the Cleansing Service Group's (CSG) toxic waste site at Sandhurst, Gloucestershire, in October 2000.

People living near the plant told health experts they suffered sore throats and burning eyes afterwards, and there were calls for a public inquiry.

An investigation by the Environment Agency followed and the company has now been charged with 15 counts of breaking health and safety rules and damaging the environment.

The charges CSG faces include:

keeping waste material in a way likely to harm public health

pollution of the environment

putting the welfare of its workers at risk.

The company sold the Sandhurst site earlier this year to architectural reclamation firm Ronson Reclamation.