Air Quality

 🌍 Faced with the incineration project imposed on us by Gestió Agroramadera de Ponent (GAP) and Griñó Ecològic in Juneda, just 5 kilometers from Torregrossa, we want to share with you some of the daily effects we could experience, focusing on air quality, to help raise awareness about what it could mean to live so close to this facility.

🔍 Effects on Air Quality:

1. Air Quality:

The pollutants emitted by the gasification plant will directly affect our health. The meteorology of our area, characterized by many days of anticyclone, lack of wind, and winter fog, makes pollutants accumulate more easily in the atmosphere. Dioxins and furans, extremely dangerous substances, can cause cancer, affect the immune, reproductive, endocrine systems, and the nervous system. The ashes generated by gasification can also contain high concentrations of dioxins and furans, which can be transported by air or infiltrate the soil, affecting crops and animals. These substances accumulate in the fats of living organisms, especially in humans, and are very difficult to eliminate. Scientific evidence shows the serious impacts of dioxins on health, with documented studies from the CSIC and other institutions.

2. Effects of Dioxins:

• Origin and Formation: Dioxins are highly toxic substances that are not found naturally but are formed during the combustion of organic products in the presence of oxygen at temperatures between 700 and 1,000 degrees Celsius.

• Toxicity: Dioxins are considered the most toxic substances on the planet. They are cumulative and difficult to eliminate as they accumulate in the fats of living organisms, especially in humans. According to the WHO, the tolerable daily intake of dioxins is 1-4 picograms per kilogram of body weight. This means that even small amounts can be dangerous. The EPA considers concentrations as low as 0.001 picograms per liter to be dangerous. To put this in perspective, a picogram is one trillionth of a gram (1 pg = 0.000000000001 grams), while a nanogram is one billionth of a gram (1 ng = 0.000000001 grams).

• Health Impact: They affect the normal functioning of human physiology, especially hormonal functions. They are agents that alter genome regulation, affecting the thyroid, causing diabetes, alterations in sexual cycles, cancer, and especially affecting the brain development of fetuses and young children. During lactation, the dioxins accumulated in the fat of mothers can be transferred to infants through breast milk.

• Scientific Evidence: For more than 20 years, there has been scientific evidence showing the serious impacts of dioxins on health. Scientific studies by the CSIC and other institutions have widely documented the harmful effects of dioxins.

• History and Notable Cases: The first known case of mass exposure to dioxins was during the Vietnam War with the use of Agent Orange. Another notorious case was the contamination with dioxins of the Ukrainian president, Yushchenko, by the Russians. In Germany, large quantities of meat contaminated with dioxins had to be withdrawn from the market, severely affecting the food industry and public health.

3. Norms and Regulations:

• International Norms: Internationally, the IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer) has classified dioxins as carcinogenic substances. Current regulations set a very low limit for the presence of dioxins as they have harmful effects even at very low concentrations.

4. Conclusion:

Dioxins are extremely dangerous for human health and the ecosystem. Their presence and formation during waste incineration represent a significant risk that justifies the need to seek safer and more sustainable waste management alternatives. Mercè Girona highlights the importance of reducing the production of dioxins by decreasing incineration and promoting waste management models that prevent their formation.

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It is essential that we all stay informed and prepared to face these potential changes. In future publications, we will delve into each of these points to provide you with all the necessary information.

Share this information with your neighbors, and together, let's face this challenge to protect our health and community. 💪🌿

#Torregrossa #FemLlavor #Health

Sources:

• Document EER-1-1-63-8.pdf
• Document dhdmTW5DFp5ttRTDzDd5rjz.pdf
• Document gerassimidou-et-al-2020-characterisation-and-composition-identification-of-waste-derived-fuels-obtained-from-municipal.pdf
• Document ARTICLES GASIFICACIÓ.pdf
• Document 10751132_6.pdf
• Studies by the WHO and other European public health organizations
• Reports by Mercè Botinas on health and incineration
• Case in Germany on the withdrawal of meat contaminated with dioxins
• Information extracted from the document "ENTREVISTA MERCÈ GIRONA".