Chemical company 3M, which has been under heavy fire for a few months due to the pollution of PFOS, now also appears to be illegally discharging another toxic substance into the Scheldt. This is apparent from an internal memorandum from the Flemish Department of Care and Health that VTM Nieuws and Het Laatste Nieuws were able to view.
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It is about FBSA, a substance that builds up in the lungs. 3M discharges its wastewater into nature, but has no permit at all, they reported Thursday evening.
Since 2002, 3M has stopped producing PFOS, one of the toxic substances that have been proven to build up in the human body and are labeled as “very dangerous”. Since then, 3M has continued to produce other hazardous substances. Before that, it received a permit to discharge the waste water into the Scheldt.
3M never applied for a permit for FBSA, although it illegally discharges waste water into the Scheldt. Because 3M has never indicated that it will discharge the substance, it is not measured by the Flemish government either. It was therefore able to discharge toxic waste water undisturbed for years.
According to Het Laatste Nieuws, Luc Lemmens, deputy for the province of Antwerp, confirms that 3M does not have a discharge permit. “3M can only discharge what is permitted in the discharge standards. FBSA is currently not included in the discharge standards. It was also not requested by 3M.”
In 2019, 3M had to admit that it illegally discharged FBSA into the Tennessee River at its Decatur manufacturing site in the United States. 3M had to stop production and pay $35 million to local authorities.
The conclusion that 3M illegally discharges this substance does not come from an internal memorandum from Care and Health, the agency’s spokesperson said in a response to Belga. “Healthcare has asked 3M for a list of PFAS compounds that 3M produces or uses in its production processes. This list (from 3M) is included in the presentation given during the Zwijndrecht city council. It is not an internal memorandum and Zorg en Gezondheid makes no statement about discharges,” said the spokeswoman.
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