Living near waste harms health? - Corriere della Sera

investigation conducted by the region lazio

Living near waste harms health?

The risk is there but is not likely to result in increased mortality. The monitoring on the systems, however, must be constant

Into The Malagrotta landfill near Rome

MILAN – to live near a landfill is harmful to health? And in an incinerator? A bit ‘of clarity comes from the Lazio region, despite the difficulties encountered by the previous Government in waste management (see the events related to the closure of the landfill Malagrotta), had the idea to monitor the health status of the population living within a few kilometers from the disposal facilities throughout the region. The result was the “ERASLazio” (Epidemiology, Waste, Environment and Health), coordinated by the Department of Epidemiology of the Region, which reports on the health impacts of landfills, incinerators and mechanical-biological treatment (MBT) in the decade from 1998 to 2008. The results are available from 18 June to the public on the project website (www.eraslazio.it). WHAT ARE THE RISKS – There are two strong messages that emerged from the survey: the first is that living close to these plants is not risk-free. T he second is that the risk is not, however, such as to result in an increase in mortality compared to the regional average. At the most basic sources of pollution, landfills and incinerators are certainly not the most harmful, yet some negative signal is recorded, especially for exposures of the past, when the plants were less controlled. For landfill sites, for example, the Department of Epidemiology of the Lazio region examined mortality and illnesses of nearly 250,000 people living within 5 km of landfills in the region. Although there is an increase of mortality is higher in areas where the concentration of hydrogen sulfide (H2S), chosen as a “chemical signature” of the fumes of landfills, there are more shelters for some diseases, for both men (+26 % for respiratory and + 59% for bladder cancer) and for women (+62% to +27% for asthma and diseases of the urinary system).

DISEASES – For landfill monstre Malagrotta also among women was observed in some cases more than larynx cancer and breast cancer in the areas closer to ‘facility. One thing to be taken with the tongs because they do not necessarily attributable to the landfill, as historically present in the area are other sources of pollution, a special waste incinerator, refinery Rome, highway and freeway. For dedicated Colleferro and San Vittore were examined instead only admissions, because these are recent plantings (in operation since 2002) it was not possible to see any effects already on mortality. The interesting thing is that it was possible to compare the health status of the population before and after the opening of the plant. And the next is actually a bit ‘worse than the first: it is in fact seen as men living in areas identified by the maximum values ??of PM10 emitted by the plants show an excess of 26% of hospitalizations for respiratory diseases and 86% for lung diseases Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) than residents in areas less exposed. No signal instead pregnancy outcomes of women living very close to incinerators, instead found in a similar study conducted in Emilia Romagna.

MONITORING – Incinerators analyzed are relatively recent, and technologically more advanced than those of the past and more confident. But there is a but, since the incinerator Colleferro is at the center of the court record for serious irregularities: it seems that burned at night and most of all, plenty of surpassing the limits of the law. So much so that the managers were indicted. That give credit to these results? The research was unable to follow, with very refined methods developed by ARPA Lazio, emissions from plants. Even epidemiological analysis was very accurate. It remains to better understand how much of those diseases are actually more riconducibli to plants or ot her sources, since the areas in which they are constructed landfills and incinerators are certainly not the most salubrious. To dissolve these doubts is definitely the case to go forward with these studies, which for now for the sake of funding were able to study the health history of those places until 2008. Making constant monitoring at this point is almost a requirement.