- Gardelegi’s landfill in Vitoria-Gasteiz has been set on fire at 12:00 on 28 June. Ecologist group Eguzki has warned that the burning of plastics in the area can generate toxic particles for health and has called for the opening of a file to investigate the causes of the fire and the control of waste management.
Gardelegi’s landfill in Vitoria-Gasteiz has been set on fire at 12:00 on 28 June. It is a landfill of 93 hectares that collects urban and industrial waste. The 23,000 tonnes that went to the Zaldibar landfill are now deposited at the scene. Ecologist group Eguzki has warned that burning waste poses a health risk "due to emissions of pollutants such as dioxins, furans and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Gardelegui plastics can produce potentially dangerous pollutants and, in addition to generating smoke and toxic fumes, seriously damage air quality, transport particles that will settle in the soil, in the water and in the population nuclei of the neighbouring area with the facilities, including Vitoria-Gasteiz". Gardelegi landfill is 4 kilometers from the Plaza de la Virgen Blanca of Vitoria-Gasteiz.
The firefighters have broadcast the video with the pictures of the tragedy:
In Gardelegi, in the pre-protection work.
Gardelegi, prevention work. pic.twitter.com/fkcOtBgLkS
— Bomber@s Gasteiz (@Fire_VG) June 28, 2020
In the news, written by EiTB at 17:30 hours, it has been confirmed that the fire is controlled.
"The management of the City of Vitoria-Gasteiz is to hide the waste under the carpet of Gardelegi"
Ecologist group Eguzki criticized the waste management of the City of Vitoria-Gasteiz: "It's based on hiding under the carpet of Gardelegi's macro-cabortry. According to the European Directive, landfill is the last option and the last level of waste management."
Eguzki recalled that in order to comply with the European Directive, Vitoria-Gasteiz had to recycle 50% of the waste by 2020 and has reached "half of that target": "It's time to work so you don't have to throw the trash into the landfill," he added. It indicates that the whole waste policy needs to be reviewed: "Information, transparency and accountability must be provided in management in order to avoid situations such as the one that occurred at Zaldibar or today's fire at Gardelegi. Waste management cannot involve delegated management, but public and direct management, in the interests of health, population and the environment, implementing a policy in line with European guidelines and reducing waste as far as possible".