The concentration of arsenic in the air measured by the Horne Foundry in Rouyn-Noranda at the limit of its facilities decreased in 2022 compared to the previous year, the company said in a press release.
The annual average at the “legal station” reached 73 nanograms per cubic meter (ng/m3), compared to 87 ng/m3 in 2021; however, it is more than the 69 ng/m3 measured in 2020.
The Horne Foundry, which is subject to a limit of 100 ng/m3 while the Quebec standard is 3 ng/m3however, does not publish raw data from its sampling stations.
The arsenic level of 73 ng/m3 measured at the company’s sampling station in 2022 differs slightly from that of 68 ng/m3 measured at the sampling station of the Ministry of the Environment, the Fight against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks (MELCCFP) located opposite the foundry.
This station also measured concentrations of lead, cadmium and nickel far exceeding Quebec standards, to which the Horne Foundry is not subject, reported The Press Friday.
Reduction projects
The Horne Smelter estimates that the average concentration of 2022 “confirms that [ses] reduction projects work” and corresponds to the target for reducing atmospheric emissions that it had set.
“We are working to ensure that this trend continues and thus be able to meet our commitment to reach the annual average of 65 ng/m3 from 2023,” adds the company, owned by the Anglo-Swiss multinational Glencore.
The Legault government has undertaken to tighten the requirements it imposes on the foundry and must immediately make public the new ministerial authorization which will govern the company’s activities for the next five years.
The company says it is confident that it can gradually reduce its arsenic emissions to a threshold of 15 ng/m3 within five years, “a step towards reaching the provincial standard” of 3 ng/m3.
What is “legal station”
The data that officially establishes the concentrations of contaminants resulting from discharges from the Horne Smelter are those of the “legal station” of sampling belonging to the company and located on its property. This station is four meters from the government station, located opposite the establishment, which is also the old legal station. The results of the two stations generally present different results because sometimes data is invalidated, due to a defective device or a problem with a sample in the laboratory, and the invalidated data is not the same from one device to another, explains the Ministry of the Environment, the Fight against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks.
Learn more
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- 565ng/m3
- Highest level of arsenic in the air of Rouyn-Noranda measured in 2022 at the government station located in front of the Horne Foundry
source: Ministry of the Environment, the Fight Against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks
- 6320ng/m3
- Highest level of lead in the air of Rouyn-Noranda measured in 2022 at the government station located in front of the Horne Foundry (annual standard for this contaminant: 100 ng/m3)
source: Ministry of the Environment, the Fight Against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks