CHEMELOT IS ALLOWED TO DUMP 14,000 KILOGRAMS OF MICROPLASTICS INTO THE MAAS PER YEAR.
21 July 2021
Much of the plastic that is sold in the Netherlands originates from Chemelot, the largest industrial complex in the country. According to the company, sustainability is of paramount importance there. For example, since last year the company has been participating in Operation Clean Sweep, a worldwide program to keep plastic granules and litter out of the environment, and intended for the entire plastics chain. So from raw material suppliers to products, transporters and recyclers.
This all sounds wonderful, but in the meantime last year Chemelot applied for and received a permit to discharge residual streams into the Maas for 7 years. The permit application acknowledges that (in addition to numerous other substances) these residual streams also contain 468 μg/l of polymers (microplastics), which amounts to discharging at least.
14,040 kg per year of tiny particles of plastic, which have been floating around in an industrial water treatment plant where they have come into direct contact with and been able to absorb hazardous chemicals. Moreover, it is recognized that the effect of these polymers on the ecology in surface water and on drinking water production from the Meuse is not yet sufficiently clear: "(Micro and Nanoplastics) hardly break down in the environment and are often poorly to very poorly water soluble. The generic policy for this group of substances is aimed at prevention... Due to their physical characteristics, microplastics can negatively influence specific functions in aquatic organisms, such as respiration, movement or food intake. Furthermore, they can induce toxic effects, especially through additives contained in the microplastics or through chemicals that adsorb to microplastics in the (aquatic) environment"; according to the permit.
Chemelot is required to investigate these effects, but does not have to return with a report until January 2024.
"So for the next 2.5 years, the chemical industrial complex may continue to discharge plastic compounds into our (drinking) water undisturbed, with strong suspicions about their harmfulness to humans and the environment. That is the world upside down," says Maria Westerbos, director of Plastic Soup Foundation.
That is why Plastic Soup Foundation is urging Chemelot to respond to this statement about dumping, and is also taking exploratory steps to see what can be done about it.
Poor Maas...
Repost: Plastic Soup Foundation