The men behind the garbage heap – two dead businessmen and a doctor

Who is responsible for collecting thousands of tons of garbage and toxic vehicle waste at the industrial site in Merholt? When SVT Småland searches for answers, we end up with a successful doctor in western Sweden. But when the SVT gets to the doctor to ask questions, the conversation gets short.

– It’s my job, he told SVT before hanging up.

After the sawmill closed in 2004, not much happened on the industrial site in Merholt, and it wasn’t until six years later when a company with the male doctor as CEO purchased the land.

The doctor, who is in his 60s, lives on the West Coast. Through the same company that owns the industrial site in Merhult, the doctor co-runs a private health center on the West Coast.

Game plan changed

The doctor company has leased the site to various recycling companies in installments. In September 2014, a British company was hired, and the company submitted a report on environmentally hazardous activities to the municipality. Now the “fluff”, that is, ground auto parts, is piled up. Later it was found that the piles contain high levels of hazardous materials.

One year later, in the summer of 2015, Burning in piles of fluff A pungent odor spreads in the community. In the same year the owner of the British company died.

Since the company is registered in the UK and the owner has passed away, the municipality will not be able to get another person in charge of the company for five years. This means that you cannot ask someone to take care of the fluff.

– When you move between parts of the game, the game plan of the authorities changes, says municipal environmental inspector Matthias Pedersen.

illegal dumping suspects

The next tenant at the industrial site is a recycling company based in Skåne that will move to Marhult 2018. The actor is a man in his 60s with several bankruptcies behind him.

The company based in Skåne that unloads container after container with unsorted rubbish in Marhult. When the municipality requests an account of the activity, it is interviewed with explanations. In the fall of 2020, the municipality of Obvidinge will begin to suspect illegal dumping.

Waste is worth the money if you receive it, but sorting is expensive. Matthias Pedersen, the municipality’s environment inspector, says it will be used to heat the area, but this has not been done.

Now this year, in May 2021, the CEO of the other company also passed away, and the company went bankrupt. Once again, the municipality was left without any representative to respond.

“This is nonsense”

The Environment and Construction Committee tried to convince the doctor to stop dumping the trash. They suggested that the doctor install the gates, as the area was open throughout the operation and traffic was uncontrolled.

But no barriers appeared at the gate, and the doctor avoided responsibility and blamed the delivery time. Meanwhile, trucks continued to dump garbage.

Matthias Pedersen was not satisfied with this interpretation.

– It’s nonsense, the gate will open in three weeks, says Matthias Pedersen.

The doctor also appealed the decision taken by the municipality and the county board of directors that the real estate company should submit proposals for garbage disposal measures.

Matthias Pedersen says he always delayed the operation and did not do the best he could.

According to municipal information, the doctor’s company deducted 400,000 – 450,000 SEK annually on the rental of the plot.

Why keep the area open and allow several million wastes to be transported there, asks Matthias Pedersen himself.

SVT Småland tried to bring the doctor for the interview, but he refused to participate.