President Considers Situation at Landfill near Hlohovec to Be Critical

Hlohovec, April 24 (TASR) - I consider the environmental damage at the Vlcie hory landfill near Hlohovec to be critical, stated President Peter Pellegrini at a briefing during his visit to the landfill site as part of his regional trip to Hlohovec and Galanta (both Trnava region) on Thursday. According to the head of state, the groundwater may gradually be endangered, which poses a significant risk to the people living in the vicinity of the site. He called for a state of emergency to be declared at the site so that the state can take over the financing of the gradual removal of hazardous substances. "Critical environmental damage has been created here, which may gradually begin to threaten the groundwater and thus pose a significant risk to the population living in the vicinity, as many people still use wells for drinking water," stressed the president. Measured levels of hazardous substances continue to rise. "While the concentration of arsenic a few years ago was perhaps 1.2 milligrams per litre, it now stands at as much as 12.7 milligrams per litre," he pointed out, adding that the concentration of carcinogenic substances is increasing at an extreme rate in the so-called retention basins where water from the landfill collects. Pellegrini added that barrels of hazardous substances are gradually degrading, and fluids are leaking into the bedrock. He believes that both the district office and local environmental officials are doing their best within their capabilities. "They are regularly monitoring the situation, water is being pumped out of the retention ponds. But this doesn't help to resolve this fundamental problem, which poses a very serious risk to the health of the population and the future of the entire vicinity. Therefore, I think that it will be necessary to find a way at the level of both the Interior and Environment Ministries and prepare a project to remove this dangerous waste and find respective resources that will amount to millions of euros," he added. am/df