A MOUNTAIN of unwanted fridges could land Kent taxpayers with a £1.4million bill. The huge sum facing the county stems from tough new regulations on the removal of potentially hazardous CFCs from discarded fridges.

Known as the Fridge Freezer Directive, the regulations mean fridges will only be regarded as safe, and can only be disposed of or recycled, if the harmful gases are removed in a way which meets new industry standards. The problem is that nowhere in the UK has the equipment necessary to remove the CFC’s and in any case, no-one has yet specified what those new standards will be.

Until that happens, Kent will be unable to either recycle or get rid of the 22,500 fridges and freezers left at the county’s rubbish tips each year.

And even when the technology is available, the costs of complying with the tough standards means overall costs are estimated to rocket from £35,000 a year to £1.4million.

In addition, Kent faces the prospect of finding somewhere to store a huge pile of appliances.

Even when the technology becomes available, the cost of meeting the new standards is expected to increase from £2 per fridge to £24 per fridge – taking KCC’s bill for disposal from £35,000 to £500,000.