Clean Industry

1998/07/01 Etxaide, Maider Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Ekologia
• Ingurumena

The new European winds that seek to combine the environment and industrial competitiveness are provoking a continuous stimulation of the Basque industry. New needs are emerging and companies have to respond to the challenge of innovating if they do not want to lose out in that competition.

Starting to take steps in the care of the environment is not easy, and undertaking a path of these characteristics is even more difficult for obsolete industries that have not experienced any innovation for years. It is the situation of many companies of Euskal Herria and, evidently, they need a push to leave their stop and immerse themselves in the modern world. To respond to this need, the Basque Government's Vice Ministry of Environment has launched a program called Clean Industry with the aim of helping industry on this path. The objective of the program is to eliminate or at least mitigate the effects of industry on the atmosphere, aquatic environment and soil, proposing additional minimization and corrective measures when necessary.

With the Clean Industry program, the industrial sector of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country will be informed of the involvement and spirit of Directive 96/61 of the European Union on Pollution Prevention and Control, which will be in the short term regulating the environmental behavior of the industry throughout the European Union. Therefore, the Clean Industry Program considers it very important that industrialists are aware of the gravity of the situation and initiate adaptation processes.

Voluntary agreement

In this sense, the Program has selected the priority sectors of Directive 96/61 (energy, chemistry, metallurgy...) and contaminating elements as objective. Thus, companies in these sectors are free to join the Program if they so wish and will receive support if, through an adaptation project and within a certain period, they commit themselves to reducing the current levels of pollution to those established by the Program. The grants they will receive from the Administration will vary from the knowledge of the best minimization technologies to obtaining grants. The call was published on 15 May in the Official Gazette of the Basque Country and interested companies can submit their request until 15 July.

The basic criteria of the program are the same as the IPPC Directive:

• Integrated approach to pollution
• Prefacing prevention to “end of tube” solutions
• Promote the minimization of environmental impacts
• Continue to promote environmental education in the industry
• Consider the following criteria: “The best available technology without excessive costs (BATNEEC)” and “The most environmentally viable option (BPEO)”

Subsector casting race head

The Clean Industry Program has currently addressed three sectors or areas: iron foundries, paints and solvents, and finally paper and paper paste. Steps have already been taken in three, but the work done in the foundries is the most advanced. Around this sub-sector there are 35 companies that group 3,900 direct jobs and make 52% of their sales abroad. In Duranguesado most of the foundries are concentrated, while the rest is distributed by areas such as Bilbao, Llodio or Gipuzkoa.

The biggest environmental problems derived from this type of industries are emissions to the atmosphere (particles, gases, fumes and smells) and solid waste (sands and slag). With the support of the program, the aim is to reduce the emissions of particles and carbon monoxide of the cubilotes (90% and 50% respectively), reduce the discharge of exhausted sands by 65% and establish systems of measurement, control and continuous registration of the emissions to air. The total investment to be made is 1,800 million pesetas, being the subsidy of 300 million, approximately 15% of the total. All measures taken must be implemented and in operation by April 1999.