RIVM: poor view of precise Tata Steel emissions, probably much higher

Actual emissions of metals and PAHs at the Tata Steel site are likely to be much greater than reported emissions. That is the conclusion of the RIVM in a new report on the North Holland steel factory, which was published Friday morning.

RIVM compared GGD measurements of metals and PAHs (molecules from mainly coal and tar) in the vicinity of the factory with the amounts you would expect based on the emissions reported by the factory. According to the researchers, this sometimes shows a big difference. For example, the emissions of some PAHs are on average a factor of a thousand higher than you would expect based on the reported emissions.

In the Netherlands, companies themselves measure ‘at the chimney’ what they emit from various substances, after which this data is checked by the competent authority, in this case the environmental service. These data count as the ‘official’ emissions of a factory or other company. It is also the data that ends up in Tata Steel’s own environmental annual reports.

According to the RIVM, the fact that these data do not seem to correspond with the actual emissions at Tata Steel can have various explanations. For example, it is possible that the emissions come from sources that are not included in the emissions registration. This concerns, for example, trains on the site, but also dust that is blown away from ore and coal storage depots, or that escapes outside through door openings.

It may also concern dust that is released by subcontractors, who are not required to report their emissions. This also includes residual product processor Harsco Metals, which a few years ago regularly caused large dust clouds with graphite.

Health

RIVM emphasizes that the conclusions do not mean that local residents run a greater risk of health damage than was known so far. In previous RIVM reports, in which the institute looked at the health effects of the factory, it used data for which it took measurements itself. Last September, RIVM research showed that the amount of heavy metals and PAHs in the environment of the factory can be harmful to children.

The institute now recommends a better picture of where substances are released on the Tata Steel site and in what quantities. According to the research institute, more information about this can help in taking the right measures to reduce dust emissions. Tata Steel will invest several hundred million euros in this in the coming years.

RIVM has been conducting research into the living environment of the steel factory for some time now. Local residents have been very concerned for years about what exactly comes out of the factory and what consequences this has for health. The sharp results of various RIVM reports have resulted in the factory’s right to exist under pressure: in September, deputy Jeroen Olthof (Health and Environment, PvdA) wondered aloud whether there was still room for the steel industry in the region.

Also read: Can Tata Steel make steel without dust or stench?

Bycatch

Friday’s conclusion about the differing emission figures is actually ‘by-catch’, as RIVM calls it: the report was mainly intended to indicate the exact sources of the high concentrations of fine dust and coarse dust in the region around the factory.

Not surprisingly, RIVM concludes that Tata Steel is largely responsible for this. Much of the fine dust and coarse dust with PAHs and heavy metals comes from the factory. According to the RIVM, it is difficult to clarify exactly which parts of Tata Steel’s production processes are responsible for the emissions. The steel factory (more than 9,000 employees) consists of seventeen sub-factories.

In an initial written response, the province of Noord-Holland said on Friday morning that it sees the report as confirmation of the “need to reduce emissions from the site as quickly and as much as possible”. She also emphasizes that the difference in measured values ​​does not mean that Tata Steel does not comply with the law. The province also wants to see whether it can better measure some sources of dust. At the same time, she warns that this can be very “complex” with dust blowing away.

Last September, Tata Steel announced that it would completely change the production process in the coming years. It wants to make steel on the basis of hydrogen, after a transition period on gas. The intention is that much less dust will precipitate in the environment. At the same time, in that case the CO . decreases₂factory emissions. At present, Tata Steel is the largest CO₂emitter of the Netherlands, responsible for 7 percent of the national total.