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Updates: polution; hunting; animal slaughter; climate change

This is where you can talk about every subject (previously it was called shout room)

Re: Updates: polution; hunting; animal slaughter; climate ch

PostAuthor: Anthea » Tue Jan 21, 2025 10:41 pm

Authorities struggle to
regulate illegal refineries


Waste from illegal refineries continues to pollute Erbil’s air and water as authorities struggle to keep pace, officials and experts told Rudaw, with many such refineries still open despite government measures and pollution at “dangerous” levels

Erbil has one of the highest levels of air pollution in Iraq. Plumes of smoke from oil refineries, inefficient generators, and many cars using low-quality fuel high in toxic substances exacerbate the issue.

Refinery owners portrayed as demons

“Some sides portray refinery owners like demons to people… as if they are the enemy of the people, poisoning them,” Maghdid Obaid, a refinery owner and a member of Erbil’s gas sellers committee, told Rudaw’s Ranj Sangawi during an episode of Legel Ranj on Sunday.

“The thing that personally made me uncomfortable is that my refinery had produced waste as a part of my process,” Obaid said, referring to pollutants his refinery released into water and the atmosphere without proper filtration or waste management mechanisms.

He explained that “liquid gas” would be emitted from refineries into the air without being burned, which he noted is more detrimental than gas flaring without explicitly stating if his refinery was guilty of this practice. He likened the practice to leaving a stove on in a house without burning the released gas.

    In July, Sangar Salih, head of Salahaddin University’s chemistry department, told Rudaw English that “all fuels in Kurdistan.. are high in sulfur.” The buildup of toxic particulates like SO2 in the atmosphere contributes to urban haze and causes severe cardiovascular and respiratory issues
Proper fuel refinement is necessary to reduce harmful substances, such as sulfur, through desulfurization and degassing processes. However, some of these harmful gases are released into the atmosphere through flaring.

In February 2024, Salih told Rudaw that some fuel sold in the Kurdistan Region’s markets had been mixed with naphtha and motor oil.

The researcher stated that the diluted fuel poses a threat to the user’s well-being and the environment, stressing that most of the diesel used in the Region “cannot even be called diesel.”

However, Obaid claimed that the practice of using motor oil to drive down the price of fuel - widely reported at the time - is not conducted anymore.

“You must not view all the refineries with the same lens,” Obaid said.

“There has been a lot of pressure on the refineries,” he added, claiming that considerable improvements have been made in the last several months.

Refinery closure efforts

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has recently intensified efforts to combat air pollution.

    Dilshad Hirani, director of Erbil’s environment office, told Rudaw on Sunday that at least 54 unlicensed refineries out of a stated 138 have been shut down in Erbil province
Hirani, also a speaker on Sangawi’s episode, updated the number of refineries closed in Erbil to 57.

According to Hirani, at least 41 people were arrested because they had operated closed refineries at night after authorities ordered them to shut down.

Some of those that remain open have switched from producing fuel to bitumen, Hiran revealed, adding that they will remain open as they are abiding by environmental regulations in their currency capacity.

Bitumen factories have also been shut down for non-compliance with environmental regulations, with one being closed in December in the Soran administration.

    Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masour Barzani led a meeting with relevant authorities last week to discuss pollution issues in Erbil and Duhok provinces. They decided that legal action must be taken against those who pollute the environment, including oil refineries, generators, and factories
In 2017, the Kurdistan Region’s natural resources ministry announced the closure of dozens of these refineries. Similar measures have been taken in subsequent years, but the effort to eliminate them has proven futile, with operations continuing to resurface across the Region.

In July, a source told Rudaw English on the condition of anonymity, that only three refineries in the Kurdistan Region conduct proper fuel refining processes - Lanaz refinery, KAR Group’s oil refinery in Erbil, and Qaiwan Group’s refinery in Sulaimani - and that other unlicensed and unregulated places are refineries only by name.

Hirani admitted that the three are the only licensed refineries in the Kurdistan Region.

Regarding the ones that remain open, he said that “most of them are good but they do not have a permit.”

    The KRG’s environment protection and improvement board said in June that they could issue decrees to shut down factories and refineries that are accused of harming the environment, but lack the executive authority to implement such orders
Many of these refineries are backed by "influential people and officials," Ghalib Muhammad, then head of Sulaimani's energy committee and a vocal critic of the KRG, claimed in 2017.

In August, Erbil authorities shut down around 60 illegal refineries following a directive from Governor Omed Khoshnaw.

In a renewed effort to combat air pollution, the KRG’s environment board has now set its eyes on reducing smoke from restaurant grills.

“We will set up filters for Kebab grills,” Hirani said on the show, explaining that they have begun requiring the use of gas filters for shops that have grilled food.

“We don’t know if this causes illness or not,” he admitted, adding that they are “mostly” doing it to reduce the sight of black smoke.

Long-term health implications

Dana Mawlood, vice president of the University of Kurdistan Hawler (UKH) and an environmental expert, said that the amount of particulate matter (PM) in Erbil’s air exceeds the World Health Organization’s (WHO) annual air guideline value by more than tenfold, reaching “dangerous” levels.

Dana Mawlood speaking during a Legel Ranj episode on January 19, 2025. Photo: screengrab/Rudaw

He said that Erbil and Basra are the “most polluted” cities in Iraq, adding that Sulaimani and Duhok fare better, with the latter leading in general.

    Warning of the long-term implications of pollution, Mawlood stressed that refinery waste in water and soil takes substantial amounts of time to be reduced, which in turn reduces the life expectancy of nearby inhabitants
“The cost… far outweighs the profit generated by the refinery, as it demands significant funding,” Mawlood said about the process of removing pollutants released by the refineries.

With the poor management of pollutants, there is concern about it seeping into water used for agriculture and aquafarming, affecting the produce that ends up in the markets. High concentrations of sulfur that low-quality fuel puts into the atmosphere eventually come down as acid rain.

    Leaded gasoline, once common, has been globally banned due to its toxic effects, particularly on children's cognitive development. Despite the ban, Mawlood said that some fuels used in the Kurdistan Region still contain lead
He added that the human body cannot remove the high concentrations of toxic substances in ingested food, compromising the immune system and considerably shortening life spans.

In 2019, the environment board passed a decree seeking punishment of people who pollute or litter. Driving a vehicle with high emissions would incur a 200,000 dinar ($168 at the time) fine and traffic police could decide to confiscate a vehicle. Refineries and factories face much larger fines.

However, the board regularly complains that they lack the executive authority to enforce their regulations.

“We are not an executive body… We oversee their [other ministries] work,” Abdulrazaq Khailani, the spokesperson for the environmental board, told Rudaw in June.

    Ranjdar Kamaran, a member of the Centre for Environmental Studies at UKH said that current efforts are “numbing” environmental concerns and are not addressing the problems at their roots.
“The root-cause solution is in the thoughts and ideas of young people,” Kamaran said, noting that temporary measures can be circumvented while environmental damage persists.

https://www.rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/210120251
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Re: Updates: polution; hunting; animal slaughter; climate ch

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Re: Updates: polution; hunting; animal slaughter; climate ch

PostAuthor: Anthea » Sun Feb 02, 2025 11:14 pm

Duhok farmers to dig wells
    and artificial ponds
Authorities in Duhok province have permitted farmers to dig wells and construct artificial ponds to preserve their crops as the Kurdistan Region faces a low rainfall season, an agriculture official said on Sunday

“They have plans to use groundwater for the agricultural sector and allow farmers to drill wells and change their irrigation systems,” Muhsin Hassan, deputy director general of Duhok agriculture, told Rudaw’s Dildar Harki.

Image

Iraq and the Kurdistan Region are amid a low rainfall season that has threatened crops and water availability.

    “For areas that don't have groundwater, artificial ponds are being constructed. So far, 56 artificial ponds have been built, and the plan is to construct more ponds in areas that are close to rivers,” Hassan said
In Duhok province, approximately 643,000 dunams of agricultural land depend on rainwater for irrigation.

“Approximately 190,000 dunams of rainfed land falls within the boundaries of Semel district and Slevani plain. Due to low rainfall, there is a possibility that production will be 60% lower compared to last year,” he added.

On Monday, Iraq’s agriculture ministry said that most of Iraq’s central and southern areas are suffering from drought and the whole country has seen less rainfall in January compared to the same period last year.

According to the UN, Iraq is the fifth most vulnerable to climate change, including water and food insecurity, facing a severe water shortage because of reduced precipitation, higher temperatures, and waste mismanagement.

The World Resources Institute places Iraq among 25 countries that face extreme water stress, meaning that it is using over 80 percent of its available supply of water and is at risk of running out of water in case of any short-term drought.

https://www.rudaw.net/english/kurdistan/02022025
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Re: Updates: polution; hunting; animal slaughter; climate ch

PostAuthor: Anthea » Sun Feb 02, 2025 11:56 pm

Should we be worried about
    our drinking water?
Louise stopped drinking tap water around 12 years ago (me too)

Since then, she has spent hundreds of pounds on all manner of at-home filtration systems in a bid to ease her anxieties about water quality.

"It's always been a concern for me," the 34-year-old nurse, from Greater Manchester, tells Sky News.

    "In my line of work, I deal with a lot of bacteria. E-coli, legionella, norovirus - and they can all come from water. It's a scary thought."
She says that while her worries may just be "speculation" - and there are strict rules on hand hygiene and infection control on her NHS ward - water has been a "personal concern" for more than a decade.

Women, well-educated and city-dwellers are most worried

    A study published last year showed 52.3% of people across 141 countries were worried about being harmed by their drinking water in the next two years
The research, which used 2019 polling data from more than 148,000 people, also found that water concerns were more common among women, people who live in urban areas, those with higher levels of education, and people experiencing financial difficulties.

In the UK, more than 20% reported being worried, while the latest trust in water survey by regulator OFWAT also showed trust in water companies had dropped to 65% by the end of 2022 - compared with 76% at the beginning of that year.

Claire, 59, from Cheltenham, says she stopped drinking tap water after her father was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and cancer more than a decade ago.

    "My father is very unwell," she says. "And very early on in his treatment one of the consultants told him making small changes would help - eating organic food and drinking filtered water."
Her parents bought a filter jug and an under-sink filtration system - and she soon followed suit.

Claire says she also questioned local water quality after the 2007 flash flooding across Gloucestershire left her and her neighbours without drinking water for three weeks.

When the River Severn flooded, the contaminated floodwater inundated the local treatment plant, leaving supplies undrinkable.

Claire now uses refillable filter cartridges called Pure Pods, while Louise opts for Water2 - a below-tap filter co-owned by Bear Grylls.

"When the water got turned back on - the smell that came out of the tap was unbelievable," she recalls.

"The amount of chemicals they were having to pump into the tap to make it drinkable."

Last May, a damaged air valve in South West Water's network allowed the parasite cryptosporidium to get into a reservoir near Brixham, Devon - which left many with a diarrhoea bug and 17,000 households without water for eight weeks.

Illness-inducing pathogens are 'rare'

The UK's Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) and other regulatory agencies elsewhere apply very strict rules to make sure microbial contaminants like bacteria and viruses and chemical contaminants such as metals and pesticides are removed, says Professor Luisa Orsini, professor of evolutionary systems biology and environmental omics at the University of Birmingham.

Her colleague, Dr Mohamed Abdallah, associate professor of environmental sciences, adds: "The tolerance is nearly zero for any of those pathogens in drinking water.

"But our research shows that while the DWI is happy about the things they are monitoring - there are things that are not being monitored."

Forever chemicals (PFAs) are 'silent killers'

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs) are a group of around 10,000 "forever chemicals", so called because there is little evidence they biodegrade over time.

They are used to make domestic and industrial products including carpets, floor polish, frying pans, cosmetics, and food packaging.

A study by the experts' team at the University of Birmingham found 10 target PFAs present in 99% of tap and bottled water samples taken from cities in the UK and 14 other countries.

While substances like cryptosporidium and E.coli can be deadly for people with weakened immune systems, while very unpleasant, their impacts are immediate and for most people relatively short-lived.

But PFAs have been linked to several cancers, Parkinson's disease, reduced fertility, and resistance to both antibiotics and vaccines. Infants are particularly vulnerable as their nervous and immune systems are not fully formed.

"Forever chemicals are silent killers," Professor Orsini says. "They have very strong adverse effects over time even at very low doses - and that's the message we want to share from our research."

According to the experts, PFAs are particularly concerning for the dual reason that the UK's current wastewater treatment technology is not sufficient in removing them - and regulation is not strict enough.

Most works have a primary and secondary treatment process, which is efficient at getting rid of pathogens and some chemicals - but not PFAs as they are extremely persistent.

Tertiary treatment is therefore needed to remove them, even when they occur at very low levels, says Prof Orsini.

The academics and their team have developed a tertiary treatment that can reduce PFAs, other toxic chemicals, and pesticides in wastewater by using tiny water fleas - known as daphnia - to hoover them up.

They argue this is a better, environmentally friendly alternative to some of the energy-intensive systems currently being developed.

No legal duty to remove PFAs

As for regulation, there is no statutory requirement for water companies to remove PFAs in England and Wales. The World Health Organisation has no framework for them either, but recommends countries aim for "concentrations that are as low as reasonably practical".

Before Brexit, the UK was going to adopt a limit of 0.1 micrograms per litre - the equivalent of one part per billion - in line with the European Union.

This is the current guidance in England and Wales - but there is no legal requirement. Last year, Scotland introduced the 0.1 micrograms per litre standard in law for 20 PFAs.

Earlier this year, the US Environmental Protection Agency enforced much stricter rules - a maximum limit of 0.4 nanograms per litre - or four parts per trillion - because of the potential human harm.

Prof Orsini and Dr Abdallah are among 50 scientists who have written to the government calling for stricter, statutory regulation on PFAs.

A cross-party bill has now been put forward by Liberal Democrat MP Munira Wilson and will get a second reading in the Commons.

But Professor Ian Cousins, an environmental chemist at Stockholm University in Sweden who also signed the letter, warns: "Because the UK has been slow in acting on PFAs pollution, many British people have been unnecessarily and unknowingly exposed to a whole cocktail of PFAs."

Sky News has contacted the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for further comment.

At-home filters remove 'considerable amount'

Feeling worried?

"It's not all doom and gloom," Dr Abdallah says.

"There are simple things that can be done at home to help.

"Carbon filters - either cartridges you buy or those already fitted in fridges that dispense water - are efficient in removing PFAs."

Both experts say they use these kinds of filters themselves.

"Carbon filtration removes a considerable amount of different contaminants - including PFAs - which is good news for everyone who's worried about it, including myself," Dr Abdallah adds.

At-home filter systems either come in jug, or countertop form, or they attach directly to the tap, or the pipes under the sink. They vary in price from around £50 to £350.

Reverse osmosis filters, which remove all impurities, are much more expensive, and often need to be installed outside - directly where water enters the home.

They also remove some of the beneficial minerals in water, however - such as zinc and calcium - but these can be restored either by the system itself or in droplets you can buy.

    In some parts of the world, and when bugs are found in the water supply in the UK, people boil their water to get rid of pathogens
But research shows that boiling only removes microbial contaminants - and will not eliminate PFAs.

What about bottled water?

For the past five years, Raza, 26, his parents, and his siblings have been buying their water - and not drinking any from the tap.

The family, who live in London, buy roughly three packs of six two-litre bottles a week.

Raza, who works as an adviser at a humanitarian think tank, says he made the initial decision to help increase and monitor his water intake - having suffered kidney problems as a teenager.

"It encourages me to drink more," he tells Sky News. "It's a sort of pressure to finish the bottle - and allows me to track how much I've drunk throughout the day."

He says travelling a lot - to countries where bottled water is considered the gold standard - and media reports of water supplies getting contaminated have "reinforced" his bottled water habit.

But what do the experts say?

Bottled water has its own regulations - but they impose the same limits on pathogens and chemicals as those for tap water.

Testing and enforcement are down to the Food Standards Agency and local councils - but this is based on representative sampling - so not every bottle on the shelves is tested.

"People tend to think water from the tap isn't as safe as water from a bottle - but exactly the opposite is true," Prof Orsini says.

"Tap water goes through regular and stringent controls before it's even distributed - so it's way safer than any other source.

"Bottled water also runs the risk of exposing you to microplastics - so tap is the better option - especially when combined with filtering."

From last year bottled water manufacturers have had to prove compliance with the 0.1 micrograms per litre guidance limit on PFAs as part of their business plans.

A DEFRA spokesperson said: "Bottled water is tightly regulated to ensure consumer protection, with the water sources for spring water and natural mineral water protected from pollution.

"UK drinking water standards are of an exceptionally high standard and are among the best in the world. Water companies are required to carry out regular risk assessments and sampling to make sure that drinking water supplies remain safe."

https://news.sky.com/story/should-we-be ... wtab-en-gb
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