Valongo Municipal Assembly requires closure of Sobrado landfill

A Valongo Municipal Assembly approved on Tuesday evening a motion that calls for the closure of the Sobrado landfill and demands the protection of the environment, nature, public health and the populations of Vale do Rio Ferreira.

The document was approved unanimously after several interventions by residents in Sobrado, representatives of political parties, mayors and a representative of the Main Day, an association that for almost a decade has been reporting problems in this landfill, managed by Recivalongo, whose industrial exploitation license expires on December 1.

In statements today to the agency Lusa, the mayor of Valongo, Paulo Esteves Ferreira (PS), argued that more than ensuring that the industrial license is not renewed, it is necessary to clarify that other licenses exist and how the inspection is done.

“The chamber will also require clarifications about this process and its chronology regarding licensing (...). There's a license that ends now in December, but there's another one that won't end until 2031. And the legislative amendment also changed the technical surveys that now take place only every seven years, a period which we clearly find inadequate in the face of the problems associated with landfills and the nuisances they cause in the population,” said the mayor.

Paulo Esteves Ferreira, who was recently sentenced to a loss of mandate in a process related to the restriction of traffic on the Municipal Road 606 (EM606) of trucks to the landfill of Sobrado, a decision he promised to appeal to, said today that the municipality will require dates and more scrutiny.

“ We have to make sure this ends. There are legislative changes, new licences appear, new deadlines, this has no end. We want to know when this ends to make sure that on that date we no longer have a landfill to harass our population ", said, demanding supervision.

“ I know that unfortunately we need landfills in Portugal (...). There should be a survey and a much more active scrutiny, much more frequent, made by surprise and not previously scheduled to ensure that the landfill works under the conditions that are required”, he added.

And he gave examples: “Lipor [Association of Municipalities for the Sustainable Waste Management of Greater Porto] has to comply with all the rules and some more. Even the radioactivity portal does. The waste water treatment plant, which are normally managed by municipalities or concessionaires of the municipalities, must have deodorization towers because of the bad smells not to affect the population. Then why don’t private landfills have this scrutiny and this demand?”.

In the motion adopted, it is said that the municipal assembly will appeal to the Government, through the Ministry of Environment and Energy, and to the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) to “in the context of their respective competences promote, as a matter of urgency, legally admissible steps to the immediate closure of the Sobrado landfill”.

“[The Valongo Municipal Assembly wants to object to the renewal or extension of the landfill permit, as well as to the issuance of any other permits to extend this activity, without prejudice to the maintenance or issue of the authorisations strictly necessary for the closure and post-closure operations of the facility, which cannot be a basis for the continuity of the reception and disposal of waste”, is also read.

The text will be sent to the President of the Republic, the President of the Assembly of the Republic, the Prime Minister, the Minister of Environment and Energy, the Minister of Health, the Committee on Environment and Energy and the Committee on Health of the Assembly of the Republic, the parliamentary groups, the APA, the Directorate-General for Health, the CCDR-N, the IGAMAOT, the Association of Municipalities of Rio Ferreira, the Association of Municipalities Parque das Serras do Porto, the Main Journey, as well as local authorities.

During the session, the statements of residents in Sobrado were highlighted, with some of them reporting health episodes after insect bites or inhalation of smells that forced them to resort to medical help.

The president of the Sobrado Freguesia Board, Ana Paula Lourenço, said “clearly and unequivocally”, as the adjective itself, that “the population of Sobrado has waited too long.”.

“ Overwhelming deserves answers, deserves respect and deserves to be treated with the seriousness that this situation demands,” he said.

Gilberto Gonçalves, a member of the environmentalist association Main Day, recalled that “for years the population has reported bad smells, dust, insect pests and disturbances associated with heavy traffic”.

“ It is not enough to approve a motion, take photographs and consider duty accomplished. The population wants decisions, formal diligence and deadlines and results,” he said.