2023-11-04 14:14:04
Tons of sewers, Sewage sludge and hydrocarbons mixed with these wastes will continue for a long time in the plateau area, in front of the Neuquén Environmental Complex (CAN), on the limits of the old capital ejido and the new extension of the territory of the capital of Neuquén., which added 8,000 hectares to its planning. But the sanitation of the oils has begun and efforts will be made to re-functionalize the pools until they have the new ones.
That turned out to be the conclusion of the last meetings that were held -at judicial request- between the municipality of Neuquén, the EPAS and the Ombudsman’s Office, which had already achieved a ruling that ordered sanitation and subsequent remediation of the contaminating pools.
But the old and obsolete pools cannot be stopped being used. There is no other place to take sewage waste. The option is the construction of new oxygenation pools in the new ejido, something that is in the planning stage.
Meanwhile, the removal of the mud containing hydrocarbons began, and a commitment was made to improve the overflows with containment and the signage of the place.. It is planned that effective control will be exercised to prevent new clandestine downloads.
The problem is that in the city there are more than 6,000 families that do not have sewers and require the assistance of trucks to empty the septic tanks, explained the Ombudsman, Jorge Rey.
Added to this is that in some areas, such as the La Sirena neighborhood, the collapsed sewage system overflows.
In that neighborhood, where an injunction that had been filed in 2016 was reactivated due to the mobilization of residents flooded for weeks by sewers, EPAS trucks or those hired by the entity must remove the liquid so that the crude oil does not reach the Limay River ( by the rainwater) Don’t even go into homes when the front owners keep their cars in garages or carry part of the waste on their shoes, for example.
The plan
After two years of presentations, inspections and analyzes of the city’s old sewer pools under collective protection from the Ombudsman’s Office, a court ruling in September ordered the cleanup.
He approved the plan presented by the commune to remove special contaminants and recover the treatment pool regime.
“That functionality was lost due to illegal downloads,” explained Rey, in reference to the presence of hydrocarbons and oils in a place where only organic waste should be decanted.
He stressed that the removal of this sludge will seek to recover the functionality of the pools “and use them in a controlled manner.”
A separate measurement involved sitting both the EPAS and the commune in the same meeting, because the provincial entity was not authorized to pour into the pools.
“It was possible for the EPAS or contracted vactors (unblocking trucks) to unload there. We are approaching positions not only for shared use but for subsequent responsibility in the administration, with the guarantee of the judicial process.al”, Rey highlighted.
“If the pools were cleaned, the pollution problem would be reduced or nil. There is a project to move the Neuquén Environmental Complex (located on the property in front of the pools) to the 8,000 hectares of the new ejido, which contemplates building new pools in the future, but there is no date for this,” he admitted.
The Deputy Defender, Emmanuel Guagliardo, insisted on the need for joint control since the loss of functionality of the poolsoccurred due to the lack of supervision of what was happening in the place.
“We are building an agreement between the city and the EPAS as a way out, until the transfer is resolved. The benefit is that it was possible to put those pools under supervision, that those contaminated sludge are piling up and then they will have to make a final disposal.”he highlighted.
He stressed that this process will be the responsibility of the municipality, with approval from the justice system.
The old pools are located in front of the CAN and near a thousand families relocated to the plateau by the commune, in the new urbanization of lots with service following the eviction of the Casimiro Gómez occupation.
Agreement between the EPAS and the municipality of Neuquén to drain trucks
The remediation process for the contaminated oxidation pools began on September 15.
In October, the municipality took charge of removing special waste, that is the sludge that is contaminated with oils and hydrocarbons in the old oxidation pools, as a result of clandestine discharges.
A total of 60 cubic meters of contaminated waste was estimated from the pools, which are also collapsed.
Agreed to authorize the EPAS, pour sludge and sewage liquids into the place and once it has been cleaned of hydrocarbons, begin joint administration of the place.
The commune was ordered to carry out permanent control at the site to prevent unauthorized discharges.
The sludge contaminated with oils and hydrocarbons will be encapsulated and taken to a repository in Añelo.
Actions in La Sirena while the arrangements arrive
“There is no doubt that there was environmental damage here that must be measured: for several days there was sewage and contaminated water that went through stormwater to the Durán canal and that to the river. This is what was managed to stop with some measures”, stated the Ombudsman of Neuquén, Jorge Rey.
In the La Sirena neighborhood, due to a work paralyzed due to contractual problems, The sewage liquid from the trunk constantly emerged from the manhole covers. Several days.
The Ombudsman’s Office The 2016 protection was reactivated (which was the one that had achieved that work), justice intervened with a visual inspection and mitigation measures were achieved. The overflow into the street was stopped and the municipality disinfected the flooded sector with sewers for several days.
The problem continues: the by pass in Luis Beltran and Saavedra remains paralyzed. Due to legal differences between the contractor (EPAS) and the company, About 200 meters that connected to the Lanín sewage collector might not be used.
“The justice system enabled the use of that section to resolve referrals. And although it was a minimal action, the overflow decreased while a new contract for the work to be carried out took place”said King.
Last week there was a meeting with the neighbors. One of the drawbacks was that the contractors did not present budgets even when faced with a call for direct hiring. “The EPAS responded that it does not have the operational capacity for an engineering work of that size, they have control and repair capacity, not to execute that type of camera that is missing”said Rey.
He clarified that the stopped work “The objective was to improve the sewage system that has collapsed in the sector due to age.
While a new contract was being unlocked, the EPAS and The municipality carried out works to repair the asphalt broken by the tasks, curbs and sidewalks, in addition to the reconstitution of a boulevard.
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