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Nitrous oxide canisters pose a danger to Notting Hill Carnival cleaners
September 6, 2022
A major clean-up operation after London’s Notting Hill Carnival had to be slowed when a large number of gas canisters containing nitrous oxide were found among the debris.
Waste crews had to collect and dispose of gas canisters separately for fear they might explode.
A spokesman for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea said: “We have a bin which is completely full of canisters plus a 3.5 tonne flatbed vehicle which is also full. And there are hundreds more stored in storage.
“The fact that crews have had to separate the canisters from the general waste has slowed down the operation significantly.
Nitrous oxide – nicknamed “laughing gas” or “hippy crack” – has become a popular recreational drug among young people. It is usually purchased in pressurized canisters, then transferred to a balloon-like container from which it is inhaled.
The small silver canisters in which it is usually sold have become a familiar sight in city centers and parks. But recreationalists are increasingly using larger 600 gram canisters, which hold about 80 times more than smaller metal cylinders. Experts describe this as a worrying new trend.
Council workers cleared 300 tonnes of litter – equivalent to the weight of 25 London buses – from London’s streets after the two-day carnival. Around 200 cleaners and 30 rubbish trucks were involved in the massive late-night clean-up operation, with 30 per cent of the waste expected to be recycled.
