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Article

19 Jan 2025

Author:
The Guardian,
Author:
Aristegui Noticias

Mexico: Authorities order the shutdown of recycling plant that processes hazardous waste from US steel companies due to heavy metals contamination

Pexels

"Shutdown at Mexico toxic waste plant after Guardian investigation revealed pollution in nearby homes", 18 January 2025

...Authorities ordered the shutdown of a Mexican recycling plant that processes hazardous waste exported from the US, after an investigation by the Guardian and Quinto Elemento Lab that revealed heavy metals contamination in nearby homes and schools.

The federal agency described the closure as “temporary”, and said it would conduct an inspection lasting several days that would verify the factory’s compliance with environmental regulations. Days earlier, a state government agency said it had identified problems with the plant’s emissions control equipment.

These actions follow a story published on Tuesday that traced how US steel companies ship contaminated dust left over from recycling scrap metal to the Zinc Nacional plant, where it is processed in furnaces to reclaim zinc...

Samples showed high levels of lead, cadmium and arsenic – including one elementary school that had 1,760 times the US action level for lead dust in its window sills.

Zinc Nacional’s own emission reports to the federal government show the company emits these same heavy metals into the air...

Zinc Nacional did not respond to questions from the Guardian and Quinto Elemento Lab, a non-profit reporting group, about the shutdown and other reactions in Monterrey to the study findings. In a press release shared with reporters after the initial shutdown of two furnaces, the company said: “Oversight by state and federal authorities, along with various independent audits conducted by customers, suppliers, and international certifiers, demonstrate Zinc Nacional’s compliance with applicable regulations and the implementation of the international standards under which it operates.”

It said: “In the event that areas for improvement are identified in our operations, we shall make the necessary adjustments to strengthen the work safety conditions for employees, collaborators and neighboring communities...

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