Polish customs and tax officers intercepted a major shipment of illegally transported waste at the Dorohusk rail border crossing, stopping nearly 1,500 tonnes of material that had been declared in documentation as loose “steel scrap.” During an inspection of 35 freight wagons arriving from Ukraine, officers determined the cargo was not a homogeneous load of metal waste but a mixed assortment of different types of refuse.
According to the findings from the inspection, the wagons contained a wide range of discarded materials, including used car parts, mounting foam, cables, and waste derived from textiles and plastics. Poland’s environmental authorities confirmed that the transport was illegal and that the recipient on the Polish side did not hold the permits required to process such waste. Inspectors also indicated that the mixture was so heterogeneous that it could not be clearly classified under a single customs code, a red flag frequently associated with attempts to conceal the real nature of a shipment.
The Lublin branch of the National Revenue Administration notified prosecutors of a suspected offence. Following the prosecutor’s decision, the entire consignment was ordered to be sent back, and all 35 wagons were returned to Ukraine. The case highlights ongoing challenges around cross-border waste trafficking, where misleading paperwork and ambiguous cargo composition can be used to bypass environmental and customs controls.
