Pirelli solves mystery of black dust from UK factory

Burton-on-Trent, UK – Pirelli UK said it has identified and rectified a problem which caused a mystery black dust to fall on residential areas near its Burton-on-Trent tire plant.

In late May, local authorities began to receive complaints of soot contaminating the properties of people living in the vicinity of the English midlands facility.  

The incidents coincided with the restart of manufacturing operations at the Pirelli factory, which had been halted for several weeks due to Covid-19 pandemic.
 
Acknowledging the issue, a Pirelli spokesman said: “Upon receipt of local residents’ complaints about soot on their properties, Pirelli quickly stopped production [at the site]."

The company then started an investigation into the matter in coordination with local authorities, he added in a 9 June written statement to ERJ. 
 
According to the tire maker, the problem was found to be due to a “one-off” failure of a filter, which has now been rectified. 
 
The company is currently contacting affected residents to support them with any required clean-up measures, the statement added.
 
Pirelli suspended tire production at its UK plants in Burton-on-Trent and Carlisle on 23 March, resuming operations at the two sites from 18 May.