U.K. garbage strikes pose a heath threat

LONDON — Stinking piles of garbage on the streets of Edinburgh are threatening the health and safety of the public, a health authority warned Saturday, as a strike by garbage collectors in the Scottish capital moved into its ninth day.

The warning from Public Health Scotland came as garbage collectors in Newham, a borough of London, also walked out for a week over a pay dispute.

Images of food waste and diapers rotting on the streets is adding to scenes of chaos in the U.K. as industrial disputes multiply amid soaring food and energy costs.

Swimmers in Britain were warned this month to stay away from dozens of beaches as heavy rain flushed raw sewage into rivers and seas.

Public Health Scotland told local authorities that the “decontamination of public areas where bins have overflowed may be required.” The agency warned that “if organic waste builds up, it can become a risk to human health.”

Garbage collectors walked out Aug. 18 and plan to stay off work until Tuesday. The strike may be extended if the pay dispute is not resolved.

Britain is facing a massive cost-of-living crisis, with wage increases failing to keep up with inf lation, which last week stood at 10.1%. Those financial challenges have worsened because of soaring energy costs — authorities say residents in Britain will see an 80% increase in their annual energy bills in October.

The country has seen waves of strikes this summer, with the public transport system grinding to a virtual halt on several days because of rail walkouts.

Primary schools and nurseries in Glasgow, Scotland’s biggest city, will be forced to close for several days next month if a strike from council workers goes ahead.

In London, garbage drivers in Newham Council began a week of walkouts Saturday, with union officials warning that they could be extended. Sharon Graham, general secretary of the Unite union, said the workers have been paid less than those in neighboring councils.

Britain’s image has taken a battering this summer.

French lawmakers in the European Parliament complained last week that the raw sewage flushed into rivers and seas by the U.K. threatens swimming, fishing grounds and biodiversity in European Union waters.