Two large fires in the UK’s St Albans area this weekend have illustrated the dangers of storing – rather than recycling – combustible materials.

Bystanders commented that Sunday’s fire at Glinwell’s Nurseries, in Hatfield Road, Smallford, which sent dense clouds of smoke high into the sky, was fuelled by a large number of wooden pallets, along with plastic containers. Firefighters were also called to a blaze in Potters Crouch, between St Albans and Hemel Hempstead – which caused the temporary closure of the A414 and A4147, along with delays on the nearby M1 motorway, due to smoke obscuring motorists’ vision.

Andy Cattigan, operations director of Waste King, the specialist collections, clearance and recycling company, commented: “These were two very large fires and they caused a great deal of disruption to the lives of those close to them – both neighbours and motorists.

“Storing any combustible material – including wood and plastic – is always a fire risk. So it makes sense to let professionals remove it from your premises and recycle it as soon as possible – rather than hanging on it and adding to your risks and responsibilities.”

Waste King offers a complete waste management package – beginning with a free waste audit to help them reduce, reuse or recycle as much as possible.

“Being resource efficient also helps you save on landfill tax, which is rising at £8 a year until it reaches £80 in 2014,” Andy pointed out. “For businesses, Waste King provides a reliable and efficient collection service for all their waste management requirements.

Where wood is concerned, Waste King offers a UK-wide Wood Recycling Service for commercial customers who need to maximise the amount of waste that they recycle while, at the same time, increase business efficiency.

“Waste King takes the hassle out of wood waste storage, collection and recycling,” explained Glenn Currie, Waste King’s managing director. “This service is tailored to customers’ needs – supplying the right containers (from skips to bulk carriers) that maximise space efficiency. We also arrange scheduled or call-off collections at appropriate times for our customers. In addition, Waste King will ensure that all of your waste is recycled, so you avoid landfill tax.”

Andy Cattigan (left) and Glenn Currie, of Waste King.

Comment: If, as they say, there’s no smoke without fire, then there’s also sensible advice to be had about avoiding both the fire and the smoke by not hoarding combustible materials.