Guangdong Customs seize mineral waste residue disguised as iron ore

Inspectors check mineral waste residue declared as iron ore [Photo by Zhang Hailong/ Legal Daily Website]

Huangpu Customs of Guangdong province has ferreted out 11,870 tons of solid mineral waste residue declared as iron ore. The waste is prohibited for importation.

In a regular check, an official from the logistics department found out that 3,870 tons of bulk cargo, at a wharf named Rongxuan, contained a lot of lumpish metal with plastic, wood, cracked woven bags and wasted electronic circuit boards.

The customs inspectors then contacted inspection and sanitary authorities who determined that the “iron ore” was actually worthless mineral waste residue.

This pile of suspected refined slag was transported from Sierra Leone to China through Hong Kong. The anti-smuggling departments dug out more clues, reexamined other similar commodities and reported the risk information to Xingang Customs of Tianjin which was facing a similar situation by using big data related to the port.

The inspection authority of Xingang customs then put in play an emergency system after a full investigation and seized 8,000 tons of solid waste at a wharf of Xingang.