On the 6th of February, it was five years since the landfill of Zaldibargo took place. The debris blocked AP-8 and killed Joaquín Beltrán and Alberto Sololuze. About 300 people gathered on Sunday in Eitzaga to remember what happened and finally clarify their responsibilities.

The representative of the Enlightenment platform, Ms. Zaldibar, recalls that the citizen initiative demanded clarification of responsibilities from the outset and denounces that the agility experienced by them has not been taken over by the courts, since the investigation of the summary is still ongoing.

Open research after five years

In 2021, the Court of Instruction No. 1 of Durango launched the investigation, which is still open. Among those investigated are the owner of Verter Recycling, José Ignacio Barinaga; the manager, María Arrate Bilbao and head of engineering, Elosegui Etxeberria. Two technicians from the Basque Government’s management team, two geologists from the consulting firm Lurtek and five technicians from the firm Geyser.

The owners of Verter Recycling managed to avoid six months of imprisonment and oral trial through an indemnity agreement. After the disaster, Verter Recycling did not pay the stabilization costs of the area or the expenses for the rescue of the workers.

As for the government, Zabart accuses it of not taking responsibility and that people with power and decision-making power at the time of the disaster have disappeared from the political scene. In this regard, he asked the Basque Government to provide information on the current situation of the landfill, due to the "lack of official information". However, they say they have great expectations, since the government has not been willing to "facilitate and make public" the information.