A residential area with 750 homes was built on land where steel industry waste had been buried in the 1970s. Twenty-six years ago, this area was donated to the metalworkers' union by a business group currently owned by CSN (Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional), which operates from iron ore extraction to the production and commercialization of a diverse range of steel products, in addition to being involved in logistics, cement, and energy sectors. In mid-2000, studies identified the presence of potentially contaminating chemical substances in the soil. The state environmental licensing agency and the Public Prosecutor's Office established an agreement with the company to identify and assess the related risks to contamination. If contamination was confirmed, the company would be required to take measures to remedy the problem.
Strategy
- Defining an investigation strategy to confirm areas of the neighborhood with waste presence compared to reference (background) areas;
- Use of a pioneering technique in Brazil for geoforensic soil investigation, groundwater, and vapor, capable of precisely identifying the chemical signature of the waste present in the area;
- Quantifying the health risk to the population based on the results obtained from the geoforensic analysis;
- Transparency in data disclosure to the public, the environmental agency, and the Public Prosecutor's Office;
- Development of graphic and audiovisual material for transparent communication of data and results to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Environmental Agency, and the Federal Justice System;
- Presentation of the study results in a public hearing for neighborhood residents and the Public Prosecutor's Office.
Results regarding this case of environmental liabilities and public health
- Currently, only 10% of the neighborhood area contains steel industry waste, and this waste does not pose health risks to residents;
- The rest of the neighborhood area has soil with chemical characteristics similar to those found in other urban areas;
- Data collected from soil vapors and risk modeling confirmed no health risk to residents;
- No chemical compounds were found in quantities or locations that could cause harm to residents' health;
- No need to relocate residents from their homes;
- Implementation of a voluntary home sampling program to provide additional safety to neighborhood residents.
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