Waste shocks Green Scorpions

2007-10-04 21:22

Cape Town - A swoop by environmental inspectors on the giant Highveld Steel and Vanadium Corporation's Vanchem plant outside Witbank in Mpumalanga has uncovered shocking levels of air, ground and water pollution.

Environmental management inspectors, better known as the Green Scorpions, carried out a compliance inspection at the plant at the end of August.

In a statement on Thursday, the Department of Environmental Affairs said this had revealed "a series of non-compliances with environmental legislation and permits".

Hazardous waste dumped on site

These included excessive emissions of sulphur dioxide, with between 40 and 60 tons of the gaseous compound - one of the primary causes of acid rain - emitted by the plant every day.

Inspectors had also found "serious exceedances of permit emissions limits for ammonia, up to 15 times the limit, and particulates (dust), up to 27 times the limit".

There was also "significant contamination of groundwater, linked to both the unlined and hazardous waste dump on site without permits". The latter was hazardous because it contained vanadium, a heavy metal.

Inspectors had further found that there was no separation of storm water and process water at the plant.

Environmental Affairs said both Vanchem and its mother company, Highveld Steel and Vanadium Corporation - whose website says its vision is to "create superior value and benefits on a sustainable basis... for all stakeholders" - had been given until October 22 to respond to the inspection findings.

In the interim, the department, together with Water Affairs and the local department of agriculture and land affairs, as well as affected municipalities, were "considering appropriate enforcement action".

Serious pollution

The inspection forms part of a national environmental compliance campaign, dubbed Operation Ferro, in which the Green Scorpions are targeting iron and steel and ferro-alloy industries around the country.

The findings at Vanchem followed serious breaches of environmental regulations uncovered at other plants earlier this year.

These included Arcelor Mittal's steel plant in Vereeniging, where, among other things, there was continued dumping of hazardous waste despite repeated instructions from authorities to stop, and "significant and serious" pollution of surface and groundwater with phenols, iron, oil fluoride and other hazardous substances.

Processes could contribute to pollution

It was also found that Assmang's ferromanganese operation at Cato Ridge had "significant" uncontrolled dust emissions, and showed "serious non-compliance" with a hazardous waste site permit.

The department said iron and steel and ferro-alloy industries had been prioritised for inspection because their industrial processes could contribute significantly to pollution if not mitigated and managed properly.

According to reports, Highveld Steel and Vanadium Corporation is in the process of selling its Vanchem plant.

- SAPA