The concentration of arsenic in the air measured by the Horne foundry in Rouyn-Noranda at the limit of its facilities fell in 2022 compared to the previous year, the company said in a press release.
Posted at 12:29pm
The annual average at the “legal station” reached 73 nanograms per cubic meter (ng/m3), compared to 87 ng/m3 in 2021; However, this is more than the 69 ng/m3 measured in 2020.
However, the Horne Foundry, which is subject to a limit of 100 ng/m3 while the Quebec standard is 3 ng/m3, does not publish raw data from its sampling stations.
The arsenic level of 73 ng/m3 measured at the company’s sampling station in 2022 differs slightly from the 68 ng/m3 measured by the Department of Environment, Combating Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks (MELCCFP). became. located in front of the foundry.
That station has also measured levels of lead, cadmium and nickel well above Quebec standards to which the Horne foundry is not subject, La Presse reported Friday.
reduction projects
The Horne Smelter estimates that the 2022 average concentration “confirms that [ses] Reduction projects are working” and corresponds to the goal it had set itself to reduce emissions into the atmosphere.
“We are working to ensure that this trend continues, so that we can fulfill our commitment to reach the annual average of 65 ng/m3 by 2023,” adds the company, which is owned by Anglo-Swiss multinational Glencore .
The Legault government has pledged to tighten requirements on the foundry and must immediately publish the new Ministerial Authorization that will regulate the company’s activities for the next five years.
The company is confident of gradually reducing its arsenic emissions to a threshold of 15 ng/m3 over five years, “a step towards meeting the provincial standard” of 3 ng/m3.
What is “legal station”
The data that officially establishes the contaminant concentrations from Horne smelter’s discharge is that of the Company’s own sampling ‘legal station’ located on its property. This station is four meters away from the government station which is opposite the facility which is also the old legal station. The results from the two stations generally show different results because sometimes data is invalid due to a defective device or a problem with a sample in the laboratory, and the invalid data is not the same from one device to another, explains the Ministry of Health Environment, Fight Against climate change, wildlife and parks.
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565 ng/m3 Highest air arsenic content of Rouyn-Noranda as measured in 2022 at the government station in front of Horne Foundry
Source: Department of Environment, Combating Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks
6320 ng/m3 Highest air lead level in Rouyn-Noranda measured at the government station in front of Horne Foundry in 2022 (annual standard for this pollutant: 100 ng/m3)
Source: Department of Environment, Combating Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks